lack of interest
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lack of interest
A state of lacking interest, indifference, or apathy toward a person, thing, or topic.
Sein völliges Desinteresse am Unterricht machte den Lehrer ratlos.
His complete lack of interest in the lesson left the teacher at a loss.
The word consists of the prefix 'Des-' and the noun 'Interesse' (interest). The prefix 'Des-' expresses a negation or the absence of something here, so literally 'fehlendes Interesse' (lack of interest).
Ihr Desinteresse an Politik ist bekannt.
Her lack of interest in politics is well known.
'Desinteresse' (lack of interest) is almost always used with the preposition 'an' followed by the dative. You have Desinteresse an einer Sache or an einer Person (lack of interest in something or someone).
Er zeigte großes Desinteresse an meinem Vorschlag.
He showed great lack of interest in my suggestion.
Common verbs used with 'Desinteresse' (lack of interest) are 'zeigen' (to show), 'bekunden' (to express), or 'heucheln' (to feign). You can also say 'auf Desinteresse stoßen' (to meet with lack of interest) when others are not interested.
Mit seiner Idee stieß er bei den Kollegen nur auf Desinteresse.
With his idea, he met only with lack of interest from his colleagues.
indifference
Desinteresse mainly means that someone has no interest in a topic or matter. Gleichgültigkeit places more emphasis on a lack of emotional involvement: the outcome is not important to the person. In their behavior, the two states can look similar.
Sein Desinteresse an der Entscheidung zeigt, dass ihn das Thema nicht beschäftigt.
His lack of interest in the decision shows that the issue is not on his mind.
Seine Gleichgültigkeit gegenüber der Entscheidung zeigt, dass ihm ihre Folgen egal sind.
His indifference to the decision shows that he does not care about its consequences.
