as in tepid
showing little or no interest or enthusiasm
a halfhearted attempt to clean the house before the arrival of the in-laws
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Recent Examples of halfhearted
Alex Bregman was the one who got away, the All-Star third baseman the club tried to sign in spring training with a halfhearted contract proposal that would be rejected.
—
Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 11 Jan. 2026
The closest Alex and Tess get to a custody battle is a halfhearted chat about who gets the armoire.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2025
Musical theater loves a go-getter, and halfhearted irony just can’t stand up to this much zazz.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
He was used to students skipping the readings or making a halfhearted attempt.
—Kelly Meyerhofer, jsonline.com, 23 Oct. 2025
At times, Beijing has taken harsh measures toward North Korea—including temporarily suspending oil shipments, restricting Chinese tourism, and applying financial sanctions to the North—although such efforts have typically been short-lived and halfhearted.
—Shuxian Luo, Foreign Affairs, 21 Aug. 2025
Patrick Mooney, New York Times, 11 Jan. 2026
The closest Alex and Tess get to a custody battle is a halfhearted chat about who gets the armoire.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2025
Musical theater loves a go-getter, and halfhearted irony just can’t stand up to this much zazz.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
He was used to students skipping the readings or making a halfhearted attempt.
—Kelly Meyerhofer, jsonline.com, 23 Oct. 2025
At times, Beijing has taken harsh measures toward North Korea—including temporarily suspending oil shipments, restricting Chinese tourism, and applying financial sanctions to the North—although such efforts have typically been short-lived and halfhearted.
—Shuxian Luo, Foreign Affairs, 21 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for halfhearted
Adjective
-
Sweeney Bell had a tepid response, however, to a recent controversy in which dozens of local Democrats were kicked off the ballot for breaking an Indiana Democratic Party rule.—
Jordan Smith,
IndyStar,
26 Mar. 2026
-
That effort has seen very tepid backing, though 22 countries have signed onto a statement expressing their willingness to help reopen the key waterway.—
Zach LaChance,
The Washington Examiner,
23 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Moreover, this image isn’t a void or hole at all, but a cloud of light-blocking neutral gas, made simply of plain old collections of atoms.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
26 Mar. 2026
-
High ceilings, expansive windows, and a restrained neutral palette creates an atmosphere that feels instantly and effortlessly calm.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
25 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
The administration of President Donald Trump is unenthusiastic about EVs compared the previous Biden administration.—
Bill Koenig,
Forbes.com,
26 Feb. 2026
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As the choral conductor has enlisted and must be replaced, the unenthusiastic choice is Ralph Fiennes’ Dr. Henry Guthrie, who has several marks against him.—
Stephen Schaefer,
Boston Herald,
15 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Make sure your water is lukewarm and not cold to ensure the cake rises effortlessly when baking.—
Robin Miller,
AZCentral.com,
26 Mar. 2026
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Apple has faced a series of setbacks in the artificial intelligence race, with voice assistant Siri's upgrade getting delayed, top-level executive changes and a lukewarm debut for the initial rollout of its generative AI tools.—
Juby Babu,
USA Today,
24 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Halfhearted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/halfhearted. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.
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