English → Latin
“indifferent” in Latin
indifferēnsindifferent; neither good nor bad; unconcernedmediusmiddle, mid, central, between, midway between, in the center; half; moderatemediocrismiddling, moderate, medium; tolerable, ordinary, normal; mediocre, indifferentsēcūruscareless, negligent; unconcerned, untroubled, carefree; fearlessdissolvōto unloose, disunite, separate, dissolve, destroy; to pay, discharge (a debt etc.); to abolish, abrogate, annullentussticky, tenacious; slow, sluggish; flexible, pliant
The English word indifferent itself goes back to Latin ferō, through indifferens.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
indifferent
Neutral as to good or evil: of a middling quality; nec bonus, nec malus: indifferens (neither good nor bad, both Cic., Fin., 3, 16, 53; but the last only as an attempted translation of the Greek: ἀδιάφορον): medius: qui (quae, quod) neque laudari per se neque vituperari potest (holding the mean between what deserves censure on the one hand and blame on the other, Quint., 2, 20, 1): mediocris (moderate; indifferently good ; e.g., sunt bona, sunt quaedam mediocria, sunt mala plura): neuter (neither morally good nor bad: indifferent in a moral sense; only, of course, when “good” and “bad” are mentioned; e.g., quid bonum sit, quid malum, quid neutrum, and what indifferent, Cic., Divin., 2, 4).
Unconcerned, securus (without any anxiety on the subject): dissolutus (phlegmatic, letting everything take its own course; e.g., quis tam dissoluto animo est, qui haec cum videat, tacere ac negligere possit? Cic., Rosc. Am., 11, 32): lentus (slow to receive impressions, to feel sympathy, or take interest in anything; in a bad sense; ☞ Drak. and Fabri, Liv., 22, 14). An indifferent look, vultus non mutatus: to put on an indifferent look, vultum non mutare: it is indifferent to me whether, nihil mea interest or refert (utrum, etc. Vid: Zumpt, 449): I am indifferent to anybody or anything, aliquid, or aliquem non, or nihil curo; aliquid or aliquis mihi non cordi est; aliquid ad curam meam non pertinet; aliquid or aliquem negligo; de aliqua re non laboro (I feel no care or anxiety about anything; do not trouble, myself about it): aliqua re non moveor (am not affected by it; e.g., to be indifferent to money, pecunia, non moveri): aliquid or aliquem despicio or contemno (think it or him beneath my notice). He is indifferent to the opinions of others, negligit or nihil curat, quid de se quisque sentiat: I am not indifferent to anything, aliquid mihi curae or non sine cura est; aliquid ad curam meam pertinet; aliquid a me non alienum puto: I am not indifferent to the breach of the treaty, non pro nihilo mihi est foedus rumpi (†): I have grown indifferent to pain, obduruit animus ad dolorem novum: to be indifferent, in neutram partem moveri (a philosophical technical term, Cic., Acad., 2, 42, 130): I am indifferent to the attractions of a place, alicujus loci voluptates inoffensus transmitto: I am indifferent to everything but your safety, nihil laboro nisi ut salvus sis (Cic.).
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for indifferent?
- The usual Latin words for “indifferent” are indifferēns, medius, mediocris; also sēcūrus, dissolvō, lentus. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.