9 English Word Pairs That Confuse Absolutely Everyone - Part 6

6. Disinterested and Uninterested

Many native speakers use these two words with the same meaning – bored, or not interested. That’s certainly the meaning of uninterested, but it’s not the meaning of disinterested. The real meaning ofdisinterested is impartial, objective or not taking a side in an argument.A judge hearing a court case should be disinterested, but definitely not uninterested!

• The children wanted to play outside and were very uninterested in doing any studying.

• Sometimes a stranger can make a disinterested and fair decision more easily than a family member.

These days, many people believe that disinterested can also mean uninterested. But it’s still helpful to know the difference.