heartless
English · Thesaurus
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heartless
- /ˈhɑːt.lɪs/ UK
- /ˈhɑɹt.lɪs/ US
Rhymes with -ɑː(ɹ)tlɪs
Where it comes from
From Middle English hertles, herteles, from Old English heortlēas (“without courage; listless”), equivalent to heart + -less. Cognate with German herzlos.
adjective more heartless · most heartless
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Without feeling, emotion, or concern for others; uncaring; cruel.
His heartless actions and cold manner left her saddened and feeling alone.
Similar: cold-hearted, uncordial, brutal, callous, cold, insensate, hardhanded, cold-eyed, cruel, dour, thick-skinned, flint-hearted · Opposite: hearty, heartful, cordial
-
Without a physical heart.
Similar: acardiac
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Listless, unenthusiastic.
Near-synonyms: spiritless, unhearty
Similar: spiritless, unhearty · Opposite: hearty, heartful, adiaphroistic, apathetic, apathistical, blasé, blithe, deaf, cool, shiftless, dispassionate, dull
-
Without courage; fearful, cowardly.
Cecilia then, though almost heartless, resolved upon talking with Mr. Harrel himself […].
Similar: spineless, gutless, unhearty, backboneless, base, soft, bitch-ass, boneless, caitiff, candy-assed, chicken, chicken-hearted · Opposite: dauntless
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: spiritless, cruel, unkind, hardhearted, obdurate, flinty, stony, inhuman, callous, cold-hearted, grim, harsh, numb, ruthless, insensitive, wicked
Translations
Every language
adj without feeling
| Español | cruel, desalmado |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 無情 mujō |
| 中文 | 殘忍 /残忍 cánrěn, 無情 /无情 wúqíng |
| हिन्दी | निर्दयी nirdayī |
| Português | sem coração |
| Français | sans-cœur |
| Deutsch | herzlos |
| Ελληνικά | άκαρδος ákardos |
| Русский | бессерде́чный besserdéčnyj, безду́шный bezdúšnyj |
Talk about this word "heartless." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/heartless. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. heartless. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/heartless "heartless." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/heartless.Cite this
@misc{heartless_2026,
title = {heartless},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/heartless},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
