dispassionate

adjective

dis·pas·sion·ate (ˌ)dis-ˈpa-sh(ə-)nət

: not influenced by strong feeling

especially : not affected by personal or emotional involvement

a dispassionate critic

a dispassionate approach to an issue

dispassionately adverb

dispassionateness noun

Choose the Right Synonym for dispassionate

fair, just, equitable, impartial, unbiased, dispassionate, objective mean free from favor toward either or any side.

fair implies a proper balance of conflicting interests.

a fair decision

just implies an exact following of a standard of what is right and proper.

a just settlement of territorial claims

equitable implies a less rigorous standard than just and usually suggests equal treatment of all concerned.

the equitable distribution of the property

impartial stresses an absence of favor or prejudice.

an impartial third party

unbiased implies even more strongly an absence of all prejudice.

your unbiased opinion

dispassionate suggests freedom from the influence of strong feeling and often implies cool or even cold judgment.

a dispassionate summation of the facts

objective stresses a tendency to view events or persons as apart from oneself and one's own interest or feelings.

I can't be objective about my own child

Example Sentences

Journalists aim to be dispassionate observers. He spoke in a dispassionate tone about the accident.

Recent Examples on the Web Burns thought that Putin sounded cool and dispassionate, as if his mind was nearly made up.

Joshua Yaffa, The New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2022 Dukakis’s dispassionate response to the hypothetical — flatly restating his opposition to the death penalty — was said to have been a factor in his defeat to his Republican rival, Vice President George H.W. Bush.

Glenn Rifkin, Washington Post, 8 Sep. 2022 Therefore, at the risk of editorializing in what is intended to be a dispassionate scientific study, this research team cannot help but say: yikes.

River Clegg, The New Yorker, 6 Sep. 2022 His approach was logical and dispassionate, encouraging us to listen with open minds to what Ali had to say.

Kareem Abdul-jabbar, The Atlantic, 3 Aug. 2022 Through methodical, dispassionate testimony, Hutchinson brought the committee and those watching directly inside Trump’s Oval Office, which bore frightening resemblance to a day-care center catering to a particularly spoiled and untamable child.

Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 28 June 2022 Instead, as translated by my colleague Jeong Park, voice actors repeat in a dispassionate tone, nearly line for line, his English-language ads addressing crime, homelessness and his general coolness.

Los Angeles Times, 5 May 2022 Its middle section features a dispassionate narrator reciting facts about Romanian history.

Rachel Syme, The New Yorker, 4 Apr. 2022 Jasiri X said having honest, dispassionate conversations can help.

David D. Haynes, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 28 Mar. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dispassionate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.