disinterested
disinterested Lexical Profile
disinterested Game Scores & Validity
• adjective
Not influenced by considerations of personal advantage; impartial and free from bias or self-interest.
"A judge must remain completely disinterested when presiding over a legal dispute."
Having or feeling no interest in something; unconcerned or indifferent.
"The cat seemed completely disinterested in the new toy we bought for her."
Word Nuance & Usage
In formal usage, 'disinterested' means impartial or having no personal stake in an outcome, whereas 'uninterested' means bored or lacking curiosity. Although 'disinterested' is frequently used to mean 'uninterested' in everyday speech, careful writers maintain the distinction.
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Coined in the early 17th century from the prefix 'dis-' and 'interested', originally derived from the Latin verb 'interesse', meaning 'to differ' or 'to be of importance'.