insensitive
Americanadjective
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deficient in human sensibility, acuteness of feeling, or consideration; unfeeling; callous.
an insensitive person.
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not physically sensitive.
insensitive skin.
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not affected by physical or chemical agencies or influences.
insensitive to light.
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not readily responsive or aware.
insensitive to the needs of the peasants.
adjective
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lacking sensitivity; unfeeling
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lacking physical sensation
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not sensitive (to) or affected (by)
insensitive to radiation
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of insensitive
Explanation
When you're insensitive, you're not feeling something. You can be insensitive to the weather or other people's problems. This word has two meanings that are closely related. When your foot is asleep, it's insensitive or numb — you can't feel your friend poking at it. When you get really cold, you can become insensitive to pain. In the other sense, insensitive means the opposite of caring and sympathetic — you're insensitive to other people's feelings. If you make a joke about your friend's bad haircut when you know she's embarrassed about it, you're being insensitive.
Vocabulary lists containing insensitive
Out of My Mind
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"The Perils of Indifference," Vocabulary from the speech
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Game Changer
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Megacap companies, including the “Magnificent Seven” group of tech stocks, have been almost rate insensitive in recent months, despite borrowing a deluge of new debt to fund the AI build-out.
From MarketWatch ● Oct. 7, 2026
Also assisting Pat are her eccentric neighbor, Prichard Knowles, and her daughter, Sofia, who contributes tough-love tips on how her mother might improve her own insensitive behavior.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
But others have called out the insensitive remarks.
From BBC ● Sep. 8, 2026
The filing alleged Flores deceptively edited the recordings to hide his own insensitive remarks and suggested he was motivated by a desire to win a large legal settlement in court.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
He could be insecure; she could be insensitive.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
