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senseless

[sens-lis]
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adjective
  1. destitute or deprived of sensation; unconscious.
  2. lacking mental perception, appreciation, or comprehension.
  3. stupid or foolish, as persons or actions.
  4. nonsensical or meaningless, as words: This letter is either cryptic or senseless.
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Origin of senseless

First recorded in 1550–60; sense + -less
Related formssense·less·ly, adverbsense·less·ness, noun

Synonyms

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1. insensate, insensible. 2. unperceiving, undiscerning. 3. silly, idiotic, inane, witless, asinine.

Antonyms

2. sensitive. 3. intelligent.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

indiscretionmadnessrubbishnonsensetomfooleryimbecilityabsurditytommyrottwaddlecrazinessirrationalitybunkstupiditypoppycockclaptrapweaknessinsensibilityimprudenceinsanityidiocy

Examples from the Web for senselessness

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Tell them of the foulness, of the cruelty, of the senselessness of it all.

  • That you may not suffer for your own senselessness, and may not harm others by your folly.

    Foma Gordyeff

    Maxim Gorky

  • It was this senselessness of feeling that first brought the jarring of the truth to him.

  • To say nothing of the inhumanity, the senselessness of duelling revolts me.

  • For it does not admit of sobriety, nor does it induce the senselessness of pure wine.

British Dictionary definitions for senselessness

senseless

adjective
  1. lacking in sense; foolisha senseless plan
  2. lacking in feeling; unconscious
  3. lacking in perception; stupid
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Derived Formssenselessly, adverbsenselessness, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for senselessness

senseless

adj.

1550s, "without sensation," from sense (n.) + -less. Of actions, etc., "devoid of purpose, proceeding from lack of intelligence," it is attested from 1570s. Related: Senselessly; senselessness.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper