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Webster 1913 Edition

Insensible

In-sen′si-ble

,
Adj.
[L.
insensibilis
: cf. F.
insensible
. See
In-
not, and
Sensible
.]
1.
Destitute of the power of feeling or perceiving; wanting bodily sensibility; unconscious.
Milton.
2.
Not susceptible of emotion or passion; void of feeling; apathetic; unconcerned; indifferent;
as,
insensible
to danger, fear, love, etc.
; – often used with of or to.
Accept an obligation without being a slave to the giver, or
insensible
to his kindness.
Sir H. Wotton.
Lost in their loves,
insensible
of shame.
Dryden.
3.
Incapable of being perceived by the senses; imperceptible. Hence: Progressing by imperceptible degrees; slow; gradual;
as,
insensible
motion
.
Two small and almost
insensible
pricks were found upon Cleopatra’s arm.
Sir T. Browne.
They fall away,
And languish with
insensible
decay.
Dryden.
4.
Not sensible or reasonable; meaningless.
[Obs.]
Syn. – Imperceptible; imperceivable; dull; stupid; torpid; numb; unfeeling; apathetic; stoical; impassive; indifferent; unsusceptible; hard; callous.

Webster 1828 Edition

Insensible

INSENS'IBLE

,
Adj.
[L. in and sensus, sense, sentio, to feel.]
1.
Imperceptible; that cannot be felt or perceived. The motion of the earth is insensible to the eye. A plant grows, and the body decays by insensible degrees. The humors of the body are evacuated by insensible perspiration.
The dense and bright light of the circle will obscure the rare and weak light of these dark colors round about it, and render them almost insensible.
2.
Destitute of the power of feeling or perceiving; wanting corporeal sensibility. An injury to the spine often renders the inferior parts of the body insensible.
3.
Not susceptible of emotion or passion; void of feeling; wanting tenderness. To be insensible to the sufferings of our fellow men is inhuman. To be insensible of danger is not always evidence of courage.
4.
Dull; stupid; torpid.
5.
Void of sense or meaning; as insensible words.

Definition 2024

insensible

insensible

English

Adjective

insensible ‎(comparative more insensible, superlative most insensible)

  1. Unable to be perceived by the senses.
    • Sir Thomas Browne
      Two small and almost insensible pricks were found upon Cleopatra's arm.
    • Dryden
      They fall away, / And languish with insensible decay.
  2. Incapable or deprived of physical sensation.
    • 1905, Baroness Emmuska Orczy, chapter 1, in The Fate of the Artemis:
      “[…] Captain Markam had been found lying half-insensible, gagged and bound, on the floor of the sitting-room, his hands and feet tightly pinioned, and a woollen comforter wound closely round his mouth and neck ; whilst Mrs. Markham's jewel-case, containing valuable jewellery and the secret plans of Port Arthur, had disappeared. […]”
  3. Unable to be understood; unintelligible.
  4. Not sensible or reasonable; meaningless.
    • Sir M. Hale
      If it make the indictment be insensible or uncertain, it shall be quashed.
  5. Incapable of mental feeling; indifferent.
    • Dryden
      Lost in their loves, insensible of shame.
    • Sir H. Wotton
      Accept an obligation without being a slave to the giver, or insensible to his kindness.
    • 1813, Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice, Modern Library Edition (1995), page 138
      In spite of her deep-rooted dislike, she could not be insensible to the compliment of such a man's affection...
  6. Incapable of emotional feeling; callous; apathetic.

Derived terms

Synonyms

Antonyms

Translations

French

Adjective

insensible m, f ‎(plural insensibles)

  1. insensible
  2. impervious

Spanish

Adjective

insensible m, f ‎(plural insensibles)

  1. insensible, insensitive, cold, tactless

Antonyms

Etymology

From Old French insensible, from Late Latin insensibilis

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