noun ·3 syllables ·Uncommon ·College level

Definitions

Noun

1. 1
   The quality of being callous; emotional hardheartedness or indifference. uncountable, usually

   "Fred was known for his callousness; local panhandlers had long since learned not to try their sob stories on him."

2. 2
   devoid of passion or feeling; hardheartedness wordnet
3. 3
   The quality of having calluses. uncountable, usually

Synonyms

All synonyms

callosityunfeelingnessanalgesiaanesthesiaapathyarmor

Example

More examples

"Fred was known for his callousness; local panhandlers had long since learned not to try their sob stories on him."

Etymology

From callous + -ness.

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.