DISINTERESTED

adjective Date: circa 1612 1. not having the mind or feelings engaged ; not interested , no longer interested , free from selfish motive or interest ; unbiased , see: indifferent ~ly adverb Usage: Disinterested and uninterested have a tangled history. Uninterested originally meant impartial, but this sense fell into disuse during the 18th century. About the same time the original sense of ~ also disappeared, with uninterested developing a new sense—the present meaning—to take its place. The original sense of uninterested is still out of use, but the original sense of ~ revived in the early 20th century. The revival has since been under frequent attack as an illiteracy and a blurring or loss of a useful distinction. Actual usage shows otherwise. Sense 2 of ~ is still its most frequent sense, especially in edited prose; it shows no sign of vanishing. A careful writer may choose sense 1a of ~ in preference to uninterested for emphasis . Further, ~ has developed a sense (1b), perhaps influenced by sense 1 of the prefix dis-, that contrasts with uninterested . Still, use of senses 1a and 1b will incur the disapproval of some who may not fully appreciate the history of this word or the subtleties of its present use.