inobservant

adjective

Definition of inobservantnext
as in inattentive

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for inobservant
  1. inattentive
  2. unfocused
  3. abstracted
  4. absent
  5. distracted
  6. lost
  7. oblivious
  8. preoccupied
Adjective
  • Over the years, Trong and his allies have promoted an image of the United States as evil and inattentive to Hanoi’s needs.
    — David Brown, Foreign Affairs, 29 June 2015
  • An inattentive public might simply see a Washington melee—the disrupters against the bureaucrats.
    — George Packer, The Atlantic, 20 Feb. 2025
Definition of inattentive
Adjective
  • These speedy and seemingly arbitrary and unfocused cuts have not just impacted federal government workers; CEOs of companies working with the federal government have started to talk about uncertainty caused by these cuts in their quarterly reports, the Washington Post reports.
    — Megan Poinski, Forbes, 11 Mar. 2025
  • From the middle of December through late January, the Celtics looked like a talented but unfocused team playing well below its potential.
    — Zack Cox, Hartford Courant, 24 Feb. 2025
Definition of unfocused
Adjective
  • Its abstracted scenario is a kind of back to the basics, expressing the sanctity of home, devotion and nature.
    — Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2025
  • The show’s overall environment was more akin to an abstracted living room than a standard runway setup.
    — Lauren Vaccaro, Architectural Digest, 28 Nov. 2024
Definition of abstracted
Adjective
  • As the biggest event of the PGA Tour calendar gets underway on Thursday at The PLAYERS Championship, some of golf's biggest stars are absent from the proceedings.
    — Faisal Kutty, Newsweek, 12 Mar. 2025
  • Kelly Clarkson has been absent from The Kelly Clarkson Show for nearly a week — and viewers are wondering why.
    — Samantha Stutsman, People.com, 12 Mar. 2025
Definition of absent
Adjective
  • Who remembers the 2005 headline-making story of how Banksy snuck a painting into the Metropolitan Museum of Art disguised with a fake beard and trench coat, while two accomplices argued with a distracted security guard?
    — The Editors of ARTnews, ARTnews.com, 18 Mar. 2025
  • Ivy seemed slightly distracted by Gable’s sudden appearance, which allowed Dakota Kai to open with a flurry of offense.
    — Alfred Konuwa, Forbes, 17 Mar. 2025
Definition of distracted
Adjective
  • These inefficiencies take their toll in the form of lost strategic opportunities.
    — Alex Saric, Forbes, 19 Mar. 2025
  • The Nordic nations, including Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, ranked in the top 10 countries and were among the top places for expected and actual return of lost wallets, the report said.
    — Nicole Brown Chau, CBS News, 19 Mar. 2025
Definition of lost
Adjective
  • What follows is a quest for somebody named Ralph Sampson, recently on the lam—born poor, grown rich, and, according to his daughter, wholly oblivious to the needs of the Mexican workers on his ranch, not far from Bakersfield, who are now on strike.
    — Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 3 Mar. 2025
  • Children were playing badminton, oblivious of the ancient church looming behind them.
    — The New York Times, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Mar. 2025
Definition of oblivious
Adjective
  • Indeed, students can be generally secure in romantic relationships yet become preoccupied while dating a certain partner.
    — Eric Wood, Forbes, 24 Feb. 2025
  • Ryan isn’t too keen on Bex asking Shane for details about the prison, and a few others remain preoccupied with covering their tracks and keeping other skeletons tucked away in their respective closets.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 3 Feb. 2025
Definition of preoccupied
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

inobservant
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Inobservant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inobservant. Accessed 25 Mar. 2025.

Copy Citation

Share

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

The Difference Between 'i.e.' and 'e.g.'

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Words You Always Have to Look Up

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden

More Words with Remarkable Origins

Terroir, Oenophile, & Magnum: Ten Words About Wine

8 Words for Lesser-Known Musical Instruments
See More

Popular Features

See More

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Top 10 Sophisticated Insults

Flower Etymologies For Your Spring Garden
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Word Game Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
dog-in-disguise
Rhyme Disguise Quiz Pair up words that look different but sound alike.
See All