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
Through all these threads, The Audacity throws itself headlong at some of tech’s biggest hot-button topics, including privacy, AI and, in an oddly halfhearted subplot involving JoAnne’s son, Everett Bliunck’s Orson, the manosphere, with an eye as cold as its characters.
—
Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 10 Apr. 2026
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
Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 10 Apr. 2026
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for halfhearted
Adjective
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When the king talked about his Christian faith, GOP lawmakers were rowdier than Democrats, many of whom offered just tepid applause.—
Kathryn Palmer,
USA Today,
29 Apr. 2026
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Among the seven companies that made adjustments for tariffs and disclosed the dollar impact, the numbers are significant and in some cases made the difference between tepid payouts and millions of dollars.—
Amanda Gerut,
Fortune,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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According to Newsweek, the overall score was composed of 80% from survey results, and 20% from social listening analysis, which analyzed media coverage and online discussion to assess whether public sentiment was positive, neutral or negative.—
Finch Walker,
USA Today,
29 Apr. 2026
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The battle was fought during the Napoleonic Wars, as Britain attacked Denmark to break a neutral alliance with other European powers that threatened British naval supremacy.—
Andrea Margolis,
FOXNews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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In this purple-on-purple preppy look, Lady Di (then a 19-year-old nursery school teacher) seemed sweet—if not a little unenthusiastic about being photographed.—
Natalie Arroyo Camacho,
InStyle,
2 Apr. 2026
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Some advocacy groups are unenthusiastic.—
Meg Tirrell,
CNN Money,
31 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Sullivan says to wash linen sheets in cold or lukewarm water on a short, gentle cycle.—
Olivia McIntosh,
Martha Stewart,
27 Apr. 2026
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This has steered a lukewarm fan reaction to a Miami Herald poll that invited fans to grade the Dolphins choice of Proctor at 12th overall.—
Greg Cote
April 26,
Miami Herald,
26 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Halfhearted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/halfhearted. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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