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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Even so, support for Bass has been tepid and many voters view her unfavorably.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
6 May 2026
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Yet, the other five matches show tepid demand.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
6 May 2026
Adjective
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Those ratings create an estimate of how many goals each team is expected to score and allow in a game against an average opponent at a neutral site.—
Dom Luszczyszyn,
New York Times,
7 May 2026
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As for footwear, Queen Maxima opted for a pair of tan leather pointed toe pumps for a neutral addition to her springtime apparel, courtesy of Gianvito Rossi.—
Julia Teti,
Footwear News,
6 May 2026
Adjective
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But historical low voter turnout in gubernatorial primaries, combined with an electorate that has been largely unenthusiastic about the candidates at the top of the ballot, could drive the outcome of the high-stakes election.—
Grace Hase,
Mercury News,
4 May 2026
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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
Adjective
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On Wednesday, Polis spokesman Eric Maruyama referred The Denver Post to an earlier, lukewarm statement on the bill.—
Seth Klamann,
Denver Post,
7 May 2026
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But Sturm sounded somewhat lukewarm about it for the near future.—
Steve Conroy,
Boston Herald,
4 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Halfhearted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/halfhearted. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
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