DISINTERESTED vs UNINTERESTED – What’s the Difference?

Disinterested vs uninterested, are you unsure how to use these words? This video gives a clear explanation of the grammatical difference.

However, the video also explains how they are generally used nowadays in conversational English. Often common usage dictates how we understand certain words, which might depart from the grammatically correct explanation.

5 illustrated sentence examples are given to prove the points.

Here is a transcript of the video: What is the Difference Between UNINTERESTED and DISINTERESTED?

Slide 2:
Are you UNINTERESTED or DISINTERESTED?
UNINTERESTED means:
having no interest, not wanting to learn about something, indifferent
Dictionaries also give this as one of the definitions of DISINTERESTED and this is the way many people use the word – to describe something a person has no interest in.

Slide 3:
However, another definition of DISINTERESTED is:
not influenced by personal feelings, in other words, unbiased, impartial
Here are some examples of this definition of DISINTERESTED:

Slide 4:
As a disinterested party,* she asked for my honest opinion about the wedding dress.
*Note: Here the word party refers to a person or participant

Slide 5:
Disinterested observers were asked to fill out a questionnaire regarding work procedures.

Slide 6:
Here are two examples of the word UNINTERESTED, meaning having no interest in, indifferent:

Slide 7:
She seemed so uninterested in what was going on around her.

Slide 8:
The chimpanzee seemed quite uninterested in all the visitors lined up to see it.

Slide 9:
Here is the word DISINTERESTED being used in the same way, a use that has become increasingly popular:

Slide 10:
Though they were lying in a beautiful meadow, they seemed quite disinterested in their surroundings!

Slide 11:

In Conclusion
While DISINTERESTED means unbiased, impartial, it is now also commonly used in the same way as the word UNINTERESTED – namely, to have no interest in something, to be indifferent.

While academic circles may insist on the first meaning of disinterested, common usage now indicates it makes little difference whether you use disinterested or uninterested when referring to not having an interest in something!

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If you are interested in disinterested vs uninterested, be sure to check this page also regarding correct word usage:
What is the Difference Between LIBEL and SLANDER?

Image Credits:

Slides 1, 10 – two girls
Creative Commons
https://flic.kr/p/2bXLG2B

Slide 4 – wedding dress
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https://flic.kr/p/9LPk7C

Slides 5, 11 – questionnaire
Creative Commons
https://flic.kr/p/cy9R5U

Slide 7 – little girl
Creative Commons
https://flic.kr/p/Jq2h6

Slides 8, 11: Chimpanzee
Creative Commons
https://flic.kr/p/cZF1M9

Regarding the use of illustrations and photographs used in this video:

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https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode