Definitions
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective making less susceptible or sensitive to either physical or emotional stimuli. Opposite of
sensitizing .
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- verb Present participle of
desensitize .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective making less susceptible or sensitive to either physical or emotional stimuli
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word desensitizing.
Examples
-
Americans may succeed in desensitizing themselves to what is going on, as many did with slavery, but most Americans feel decidedly uncomfortable about the stilled heartbeats and brains of 1.5 million human fetuses every year.
-
Being familiar with guns and their destructive capabilities fostered respect for them and was not "desensitizing" as many "consequence free" violent video games.
-
Hip Hop - the misogynist, racist kind - has found no mainstream societal success at "desensitizing" the use of "nigger", "bitch" or "cunt", and it sells into middle class white homes at about 100 times the rate of anything Eve Ensler has offered.
Congratulations to Jane Fonda! Ann Althouse 2008
-
In a posting cited by the FBI, Chesser recommended "desensitizing" law enforcement by planting phony bombs: "A cop might walk up to a bag that someone thought might be a bomb, so he assumes it is not.
Internet helped Muslim convert from Northern Virginia embrace extremism at warp speed Tara Bahrampour 2010
-
In a posting cited by the FBI, Chesser recommended "desensitizing" law enforcement by planting phony bombs: "A cop might walk up to a bag that someone thought might be a bomb, so he assumes it is not.
Internet helped Muslim convert from Northern Virginia embrace extremism at warp speed Tara Bahrampour 2010
-
That decade of sadness dotted with trucker hats, Lord of the Rings movies, and bouts of hardcore, desensitizing hope-porn fueled by the prospect of a black guy becoming president?
HUFFPOST HILL - Santorum Discusses 'Frothy Biproduct' Eliot Nelson 2011
-
That decade of sadness dotted with trucker hats, Lord of the Rings movies, and bouts of hardcore, desensitizing hope-porn fueled by the prospect of a black guy becoming president?
HUFFPOST HILL - Santorum Discusses 'Frothy Biproduct' Eliot Nelson 2011
-
Cockfighters seem to have no qualms about exposing young people to graphic animal abuse, desensitizing them to the suffering these birds endure for an activity that has no socially redeemable value.
Wayne Pacelle: New Investigation Finds Cockfighters Flocking to Texas Wayne Pacelle 2011
-
Easing IBS: A cooling compound found in peppermint eased the symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome in mice by desensitizing nerve fibers in the large intestine, according to a study in the journal Pain.
Finding the Pathways to a Cause of Tinnitus Ann Lukits 2011
-
Cockfighters seem to have no qualms about exposing young people to graphic animal abuse, desensitizing them to the suffering these birds endure for an activity that has no socially redeemable value.
Wayne Pacelle: New Investigation Finds Cockfighters Flocking to Texas Wayne Pacelle 2011
Comments
Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.