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GCheng620 Posted 13 years ago
Vocabulary

oblivious v.s apathetic

Are these two words totally interchangeable under all circumstances?
is it the best choice of word to say "oblivious to a kid's suffering"?
  

Top answer

The two words are similar in meaning but are normally not interchangeable. As for your example, "oblivious" is possible if you want to say that he is unaware of/doesn't even notice a kid's suffering. However, if your intention is to say that he doesn't show any sympathy for a kid's suffering then I'd probably go with "unsympathetic" or perhaps "indifferent".

— Ivanhr

  • The two words are similar in meaning but are normally not interchangeable.
  • As for your example, "oblivious" is possible if you want to say that he is unaware of/doesn't even notice a kid's suffering.
  • However, if your intention is to say that he doesn't show any sympathy for a kid's suffering then I'd probably go with "unsympathetic" or perhaps "indifferent".
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3 Answers
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The two words are similar in meaning but are normally not interchangeable. As for your example, "oblivious" is possible if you want to say that he is unaware of/doesn't even notice a kid's suffering. However, if your intention is to say that he doesn't show any sympathy for a kid's suffering then I'd probably go with "unsympathetic" or perhaps "indifferent".
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IvanhrThe two words are similar in meaning but are normally not interchangeable. As for your example, "oblivious" is possible if you want to say that he is unaware of/doesn't even notice a kid's suffering. However, if your intention is to say that he doesn't show any sympathy for a kid's suffering then I'd probably go with "unsympathetic" or perhaps "indifferent".
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"apathetic" is possible in that context. However, a more common way would be to say "(not) show compassion/sympathy for someone". "indifferent" is also more common than apathetic (and basically means the same thing).
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