1
as in ruthless
having or showing a lack of sympathy or tender feelings
gave the homeless people on the street only an unfeeling glance
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in numb
lacking in sensation or feeling
her heart was as cold and hard as the unfeeling marble statue in her garden
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in inanimate
lacking animate awareness or sensation
she spoke politely even to the unfeeling virtual assistant on her phone
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of unfeeling
Human failings amidst an unfeeling snowpocalypse make for some engaging scenes.
—
Ars Technica, 22 Dec. 2024
The author renders the four-year-old Margaret’s inner life with sensitive complexity, depicting an alert child logic that defies adults’ view of her as slow and unfeeling.
—The New Yorker, 12 June 2024
That’s because for decades, reptiles have been characterized as cold, unfeeling, and even primitive creatures.
—Lily Carey, Discover Magazine, 8 Apr. 2024
But as the film unspools and Agent Smith comes face to face with Neo and his master Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne), Weaving begins showing signs that this AI is not so unfeeling, not so unbothered after all.
—Manuel Betancourt, Los Angeles Times, 31 Mar. 2024
See All Example Sentences for unfeeling
Ars Technica, 22 Dec. 2024
The author renders the four-year-old Margaret’s inner life with sensitive complexity, depicting an alert child logic that defies adults’ view of her as slow and unfeeling.
—The New Yorker, 12 June 2024
That’s because for decades, reptiles have been characterized as cold, unfeeling, and even primitive creatures.
—Lily Carey, Discover Magazine, 8 Apr. 2024
But as the film unspools and Agent Smith comes face to face with Neo and his master Morpheus (Laurence Fishburne), Weaving begins showing signs that this AI is not so unfeeling, not so unbothered after all.
—Manuel Betancourt, Los Angeles Times, 31 Mar. 2024
See All Example Sentences for unfeeling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for unfeeling
Adjective
-
Hunted by the ruthless crime boss that Don worked for and learned all the boss’s sinister secrets — Perlman plays him — Don has a reason to seek redemption.—
Mike Fleming Jr,
Deadline,
5 Sep. 2025
-
Witness Alex Hales’ ruthless removal.—
Tim Ellis,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Having weathered so many punches heretofore, the viewer is more likely to be numb than moved.—
Derek Robertson,
The Washington Examiner,
5 Sep. 2025
-
During Covid, the world felt numb and dystopian.—
Kim Gordon,
Rolling Stone,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The American flag is not a mere inanimate banner.—
Josh Hammer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Aug. 2025
-
Thin bony fingers as inanimate as dry cigarette papers.—
Hazlitt,
Hazlitt,
16 July 2025
Adjective
-
In 1918, Bolshevik secret police forced Anastasia Romanov and her imperial family into a damp basement to face a merciless firing squad.—
Ashlee Conour,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Sep. 2025
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The lengthy, merciless caption is basically the rock equivalent of Miranda Priestly’s cerulean sweater takedown.—
Angie Martoccio,
Rolling Stone,
22 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Daniel, having fallen off the side of a mountain on a rock-climbing trip with Cherry, is in the hospital, unconscious and fighting for his life.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
10 Sep. 2025
-
As Daniel lies unconscious and broken in a hospital bed, the doctors warn Laura and her husband, Howard (Waleed Zuaiter), that their son probably won’t make it.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Its stony soil and cool climate produce lower yields, but more expressive flavors, especially in chardonnay, pinot noir, and sparkling wines.—
Alexandra Emanuelli,
Travel + Leisure,
7 Sep. 2025
-
No expensive meter running that is racking up hefty bills and stony fees.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
8 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Outside what is today a parking garage, a group of Union soldiers — unarmed and asleep in tents — were trampled by horses and murdered by Quantrill’s raiders.—
Quentin Corpuel,
Kansas City Star,
6 Sep. 2025
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Alessandro Michele debuted Valentino’s resort 2026 collection as an assortment of dreamscape portraits featuring models playing guitar, applying makeup or asleep in bed.—
Julia Teti,
Footwear News,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The brain, like other internal organs, is insensate, its lack of sensory receptors attested by videos of virtuoso violinists who play on unfazed as neurosurgeons go to work inside their skulls.—
Matthew Ponsford,
WIRED,
19 Sep. 2024
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But states have used midazolam alone — and at much higher doses — in executions since 2013, claiming the drug will render people insensate to pain before the administration of other lethal injection drugs.—
Lauren Gill,
ProPublica,
29 Apr. 2023
Cite this Entry
“Unfeeling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/unfeeling. Accessed 14 Sep. 2025.
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