senseless
Americanadjective
-
destitute or deprived of sensation; unconscious.
- Synonyms:
- insensible, insensate
-
lacking mental perception, appreciation, or comprehension.
- Synonyms:
- undiscerning, unperceiving
- Antonyms:
- sensitive
-
stupid or foolish, as persons or actions.
- Antonyms:
- intelligent
-
nonsensical or meaningless, as words.
This letter is either cryptic or senseless.
adjective
-
lacking in sense; foolish
a senseless plan
-
lacking in feeling; unconscious
-
lacking in perception; stupid
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of senseless
Explanation
Senseless things have no meaning — you can't easily explain why they happen. Senseless people, on the other hand, are simply unconscious. This adjective often describes something terrible or violent, like a senseless accident or the senseless destruction of a city. It can also mean "done without thinking," or "lacking understanding," so a senseless student will give the teacher a blank look when their name is called, and a hiking trip across the Rockies in the winter would be senseless too. The "unconscious" meaning is the oldest, dating from the 1550s.
Vocabulary lists containing senseless
Power Suffix: -less
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Florida's B.E.S.T. Common Suffixes: -less
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-less
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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.
When grunge gripped the United States, they released 1995’s “Gratuitous Sax & Senseless Violins” — perhaps the un-grungiest album possible — and cracked the Top 10 in Germany with a single.
From Washington Post • Jun. 17, 2021
Once a month, they would give 100 percent of sales and tips to local groups like Mothers Against Senseless Killings, a nonprofit organization aimed at interrupting violence.
From New York Times • Oct. 9, 2020
“My physical body is totally useless, yet in this moment I’m completely free. Senseless liberation.”
From Los Angeles Times • May 22, 2020
Just last year, she tried her hand in the literary world with a well-received memoir entitled "My Own Devices: True Stories from the Road on Music, Science, and Senseless Love."
From Salon • Nov. 16, 2019
Senseless words were in his mind and he was laughing.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
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.
