First Known Use: 15th century
Dictionary
1callous
adjective cal·lous \ˈka-ləs\
: not feeling or showing any concern about the problems or suffering of other people
Full Definition of CALLOUS
1
a : being hardened and thickened b : having calluses <callous hands>
2
a : feeling no emotion b : feeling or showing no sympathy for others : hard-hearted <a callous indifference to suffering>
— cal·lous·ly adverb
— cal·lous·ness noun
See callous defined for English-language learners
See callous defined for kids
ADVERTISEMENT
Examples of CALLOUS
- … 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
- [+]more
Origin of CALLOUS
Middle English, from Latin callosus, from callum, callus callous skin
Related to CALLOUS
- Synonyms
- affectless, hard, case-hardened, cold-blooded, compassionless, desensitized, 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
- charitable, compassionate, humane, kindhearted, kindly, merciful, sensitive, softhearted, sympathetic, tender, tenderhearted, warm, warmhearted
2callous
verb cal·lous \ˈka-ləs\
Definition of CALLOUS
transitive verb
: to make callous (see 1callous) <hands calloused by hard manual labor>
Origin of CALLOUS
(see 1callous)
First Known Use: 1834
Other Biology Terms
CALLOUSNESS Defined for Kids
callous
adjective cal·lous \ˈka-ləs\
Definition of CALLOUS for Kids
: feeling or showing no sympathy for others <a callous refusal to help>
Medical Dictionary
callous
adjective cal·lous \ˈkal-əs\
Medical Definition of CALLOUS
1
: being hardened and thickened
2
: having calluses
Learn More About CALLOUS
Browse
Next Word in the Dictionary: calloutPrevious Word in the Dictionary: CallosobruchusAll Words Near: callous
ADVERTISEMENT
Seen & Heard
What made you want to look up callous? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).