callous

English

Etymology

From Latin callōsus (“hard-skinned”), from callum (“hardened skin”) + -ōsus.

Pronunciation

(UK, US) IPA^(key): /ˈkæləs/
Audio (Southern England): (file)
Rhymes: -æləs
Homophone: callus

Adjective

callous (comparative more callous, superlative most callous)

(figurative) Emotionally hardened; unfeeling and indifferent to the suffering/feelings of others.
Synonyms: heartless, insensitive; see also Thesaurus:stern

She was so callous that she could criticise a cancer patient for wearing a wig.
- 2021 September 15, Laura Martin, “How talent shows became TV's most bizarre programmes”, in BBC‎^[1]:
  Re-watching some of the audition rounds of these shows now, you're struck by how callous the judges' comments often were, and how they presented a cruel spectacle in which the audience were set up to laugh at the "deluded" members of the public who believed they could sing.
(literal) Having calluses, or relating to calluses.
Synonyms: callousy, callusy, calloused, callused

Derived terms

uncallous

Related terms

Translations

emotionally hardened

Bulgarian: безчувствен (bg) (bezčuvstven), безсърдечен (bg) (bezsǎrdečen)
Catalan: insensible (ca) m, cruel (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 無情的 / 无情的 (zh) (wúqíng de), 鐵石心腸的 / 铁石心肠的 (zh) (tiěshí xīncháng de)
Czech: otrlý
Danish: følelseskold, hjerteløs, ubarmhjertig
Dutch: ongevoelig (nl), hard (nl), gevoelloos (nl), bot (nl), harteloos (nl), afgestompt (nl)
Finnish: tunteeton (fi), kylmä (fi), sydämetön (fi)
French: endurci (fr), sans-cœur (fr), insensible (fr) m or f
Galician: frío (gl) m, indolente m, insensible (gl) m, desconsiderado m, endurecido m, cínico (gl) m
German: gefühllos (de), verhärtet (de), abgestumpft (de), herzlos (de)
Gothic: 𐌳𐌰𐌿𐍆𐍃 (daufs)
Greek: σκληρόκαρδος (el) (sklirókardos), άκαρδος (el) (ákardos)
Hungarian: kérges (hu), keményszívű (hu), érzéketlen (hu)
Icelandic: kaldgeðja m, tilfinningalaus (is) m, harðgeðja m, harðlyndur m, harðbrjósta m, fólskulegur (is) m
Italian: cinico (it), insensibile (it)
Lithuanian: bejausmis
Macedonian: бесчувстви́телен (besčuvstvítelen), бе́счувствен (bésčuvstven), немило́срден (nemilósrden)
Maori: ueke, ngākau-rahirahi, tītonga
Marathi: भावजड (bhāvjaḍ)
Plautdietsch: onemfintlich
Polish: bezduszny (pl), nieczuły (pl)
Portuguese: insensível (pt)
Romanian: nesimțit (ro), duritate (ro), insensibil (ro), fără inimă
Russian: чёрствый (ru) (čórstvyj), бессерде́чный (ru) (besserdéčnyj), безду́шный (ru) (bezdúšnyj), бесчу́вственный (ru) (besčúvstvennyj)
Serbo-Croatian: nemilosrdan (sh), bezosjećajan, tvrd (sh)
Spanish: insensible (es), cruel (es), desconsiderado (es)
Swedish: känslolös (sv), känslokall (sv), hjärtlös (sv)
Turkish: katı (tr)
Ukrainian: безду́шний (uk) (bezdúšnyj), безсерде́чний (uk) (bezserdéčnyj), нечу́лий (nečúlyj), зачерстві́лий (začerstvílyj), загрубі́лий (zahrubílyj)

having calluses

Bulgarian: мазолест (mazolest)
Catalan: callós (ca) m
Dutch: eeltig (nl)
Finnish: känsäinen
French: calleux (fr)
Galician: caloso (gl) m, calosa f
German: schwielig (de)
Hungarian: kérges (hu), bőrkeményedéses (hu)
Irish: cranrach, fadharcánach
Italian: calloso (it)
Latin: callōsus
Macedonian: please add this translation if you can
Maori: ueke, utonga, raupā
Old English: wearriht
Polish: zgrubiały, zrogowaciały
Russian: мозо́листый (ru) (mozólistyj)
Serbo-Croatian: žuljevit (sh), kalozan
Spanish: calloso (es)
Turkish: nasırlı (tr)
Ukrainian: мозоля́стий (mozoljástyj)

Noun

callous (plural callouses)

Alternative form of callus.
- 1963, Lester del Rey, The Sky Is Falling:
  Hanson was beginning to feel annoyance at the suddenly cocksure and unsympathetic girl, but he stood fully erect and flexed his muscles. There wasn't even a trace of bedsoreness, though he had been flat on his back long enough to grow callouses.

Verb

callous (third-person singular simple present callouses, present participle callousing, simple past and past participle calloused)

Alternative form of callus.