Meaning & use
insensible
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Meanings
adjectivenot comparable
Unable to feel or notice things, especially because of unconsciousness or injury.
Grammar: Not gradable; often used after 'be' or 'become'.
Patterns
- be insensible to something
- become insensible
The patient was insensible to pain after the accident.
He lay insensible on the ground for several minutes.
adjectivenot comparable
Not aware of or not noticing something; lacking knowledge of a situation.
Grammar: Often followed by 'of' or 'to'.
Patterns
- be insensible of something
- be insensible to something
She seemed insensible of the danger she was in.
They were insensible to the feelings of those around them.
Common combinations
- insensible to pain
- The drug made him insensible to pain.
- insensible of danger
- He walked on, insensible of the danger ahead.
- fall insensible
- She fell insensible to the floor.
Synonyms and how they differ
- unconscious
- Unconscious means not awake or aware, often due to injury; insensible is more formal and can also mean simply not noticing something.
- unaware
- Unaware means not knowing about something, but it does not imply a physical inability to feel.
Opposites
Word family
- insensibility noun
- The state of being unable to feel or notice.
- insensibly adverb
- In a way that shows no feeling or awareness.
Commonly confused: insensible or insensitive?
insensible vs insensitive
Insensitive means not caring about others' feelings, while insensible means unable to feel physically or not aware of something.
Practice
After the accident, he was ______ to any sensation in his legs.
Choose one answer.
'Insensible' is correct because it describes a physical inability to feel. 'Insensitive' would mean he did not care about his legs' feelings, which is not the intended meaning.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “insensible”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.