What People Think It Means: Not interested in or concerned about something. What It Actually Means: Not influenced by considerations of personal advantage. This one is just plain mean. The prefix dis- in English almost exclusively is added to a word to mean its opposite. Youre dishonest if youre not honest, you disagree if you dont agree. So it follows that if youre not interested, youre disinterested, right? "No!" says the English language while cackling maniacally. Uninterested is when youre not interested, disinterested is when you have an impartial point of view. So if youre being tried in court for a murder everyone thinks you committed, you want a disinterested jury, but you probably dont want an uninterested one. One might wonder why it works like this. The answer? Because logic and language clearly dont mix, so dont bother giving yourself an aneurysm and/or high blood pressure trying to figure it out.
Canadian student. Spends probably an unhealthy amount of time enthusing over musicals, unpopular TV shows, and Harry Potter. Main life goal: to become fluent in Elvish.
