adj.
- not influenced by considerations of personal advantage; impartial.
- having or feeling no interest or concern.
Derivative
- disinterestedly adv.
- disinterestedness n.
Usage
According to traditional guidelines, disinterested should only be used to mean ‘impartial’ and should not be used to mean ‘not interested’ (i.e. as a synonym for uninterested). In fact, the earliest recorded sense of disinterested is for the disputed sense and it is in widespread use today, although it should be avoided in careful writing.
Etymology
C17: past part. of the rare verb disinterest ‘rid of interest’.