callous
/ˈkæləs/ (bre, ipa) · [kˈæləs] /ˈkæləs/ (ame, ipa) · [kˈæləs] /ˈka-ləs How to pronounce callous (audio)/ (ame, mw)
callous — adjective
- callouspositive
- more callouscomparative
- most calloussuperlative
1. showing no real concern when other people are hurt, upset, or in trouble
showing no real concern when other people are hurt, upset, or in trouble
Arjun gave a callous shrug when the waitress dropped the tray.
callous + noun showing visible indifference
Yuna made a callous joke after her cousin broke an ankle.
The manager's callous email left Bao furious and the interns silent.
Layla sounded callous when she blamed the flood victims for not leaving sooner.
Christopher seemed callous toward the neighbour whose shop had burned.
- insensitive
milder; often suggests poor awareness rather than moral coldness
- heartless
stronger; emphasizes an absence of pity in serious situations
- cruel
usually stronger because it can imply active enjoyment of causing pain
- compassionate
showing active sympathy and concern for suffering
- considerate
emphasizes thinking about other people's feelings and needs
文法句型
callous to someone's suffering
a callous remark / decision / response
用法筆記
Often followed by 'to' or 'toward' when naming the suffering someone does not care about. Stronger than 'insensitive' because it suggests the pain is obvious but ignored anyway.
常見錯誤
2. having skin that has grown thick and hard from repeated rubbing or heavy work
having skin that has grown thick and hard from repeated rubbing or heavy work
Cole's callous fingertips no longer hurt during long guitar rehearsals.
collocation: callous fingertips
The mechanic's callous hands left dark prints on the rag.
collocation: callous hands
Kwame showed the nurse the callous patch on his heel.
Maeve rubbed lotion into the callous skin beside her thumb.
文法句型
callous hands / skin / fingertips
be callous from repeated rubbing
用法筆記
Unlike adjective/1, this sense is about the physical condition of skin. In modern everyday English, 'calloused' is often more common after 'be', while 'callous' still appears before nouns such as 'callous hands' or 'callous skin'.
常見錯誤
callous — verb
- callouspresent simple I / you / we / they
- callouses3rd person singular
- callousing-ing form
- callousedpast simple
1. to make a person less able to feel sympathy or shock, or to make skin grow hard
to make a person less able to feel sympathy or shock, or to make skin grow hard through repeated pressure
Years in the emergency ward had calloused Christopher to scenes of pain.
callous someone to + noun
The coach warned that mocking patients would callous the students.
Weeks of rope drills calloused Hannah's palms before the regatta.
Months of hammer work calloused the skin below Bao's thumb.
- harden
broader and can refer to attitudes, emotions, or physical materials
- numb
focuses on loss of feeling, often without the moral tone of 'callous'
- desensitize
more neutral or technical; often used for reducing reaction through repeated exposure
文法句型
callous someone to suffering
callous the skin on [body part]
用法筆記
When the object is a person, this verb often takes 'to' before the experience they stop reacting to. It can also take a body-part object for skin hardened by repeated work or friction.