callous
adjective
\
Definition of callous
(Entry 1 of 2)
callous
verb
\
Definition of callous (Entry 2 of 2)
Keep scrolling for more
Synonyms & Antonyms for callous
Synonyms: Adjective
affectless, case-hardened, cold-blooded, compassionless, desensitized, hard, hard-boiled, hard-hearted, heartless, indurate, inhuman, inhumane, insensate, insensitive, ironhearted, merciless, obdurate, pachydermatous, pitiless, remorseless, ruthless, slash-and-burn, soulless, stony (also stoney), stonyhearted, take-no-prisoners, thick-skinned, uncharitable, unfeeling, unmerciful, unsparing, unsympathetic
Antonyms: Adjective
charitable, compassionate, humane, kindhearted, kindly, merciful, sensitive, softhearted, sympathetic, tender, tenderhearted, warm, warmhearted
Visit the Thesaurus for More
Examples of callous in a Sentence
Adjective
… under Orton's own companionable charm there was something hard and callous, the result no doubt of a loveless upbringing … — Benedict Nightingale, New York Times Book Review, 10 May 1987 … the scenes involving the snotty, callous dean ring false right from the start … — Pauline Kael, New Yorker, 8 Apr. 1985 Patient, cold and callous, our hands wrapped in socks, we waited to snowball the cats. — Dylan Thomas, "A Child's Christmas in Wales," in Quite Early One Morning, 1954 a selfish and callous young man a callous refusal to help the poor
Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective
This is the callous short-term memory that football players possess. — Kalyn Kahler, SI.com, "Impact of Andrew Luck’s Retirement Stretching Across Colts’ Locker Room, Beyond," 28 Aug. 2019 The protests began as a demonstration against the weak economy, graft scandals, and a callous response to Hurricane Maria. — Patricia Mazzei, BostonGlobe.com, "Puerto Rico is on alert for possible hurricane," 27 Aug. 2019 The Walker family was troubled in so many ways, and this episode reveals that Bryce’s father was likely the person most to blame for Bryce’s callous side. — Kaitlin Reilly, refinery29.com, "R29 Binge Club: 13 Reasons Why Season 3 Recap," 24 Aug. 2019 The banality of mass shootings and politicians' callous response is brain-breaking, and so is the diversity of experience in America. — Emma Grey Ellis, WIRED, "How '30-50 Feral Hogs' Became the New 'Thoughts and Prayers'," 6 Aug. 2019 But according to Pugh, Dani's act of seemingly callous vengeance isn't so cut and dried. — Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, "'Midsommar' spoilers! Let's debate that insane, weirdly cathartic ending," 26 June 2019 The families of Christina and Tyler Roy were torn apart in a callous act of violence two months ago. — Vinny Vella, Philly.com, "Families of young couple slain in Bucks County form memorial foundation," 5 July 2018 For many Americans who do support the Second Amendment but nonetheless want to see more gun control and hope mass shootings will cease, the clinical petition and the arguments Remington Arms is making will likely seem callous. — Ephrat Livni, Quartz, "A gunmaker wants the US Supreme Court to affirm its immunity from lawsuits," 8 Aug. 2019 The chats revealed discriminatory attitudes — including homophobia, transphobia, misogyny, xenophobia and fat-shaming — and a callous indifference for the people of Puerto Rico, including the thousands who died after Hurricane Maria. — NBC News, "For Puerto Rico's LGBTQ community, fight doesn't end with Rosselló," 26 July 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused. — Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused. — Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused. — Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused. — Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused. — Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused. — Peter Talbot, The Seattle Times, "Solo rower takes epic, 336-day journey across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 14 June 2019 His beard was rough, and his hands were cracked and calloused. — oregonlive.com, "Epic journey takes solo rower across Pacific from Washington to Australia," 13 June 2019 Years as a welder have left his hands calloused, nearly immune to burns. — Hilary Cadigan, Bon Appetit, "The Unmistakable Bryan Furman, Georgia’s New King of Barbecue," 25 June 2018These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'callous.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.