desensitize

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de·sen·si·tize / dēˈsensiˌtīz/ • v. [tr.] make less sensitive: creams to desensitize the skin at the site of the injection. ∎  make (someone) less likely to feel shock or distress at scenes of cruelty, violence, or suffering by overexposure to such images: [as adj.] (desensitized) people who view such movies become desensitized to violence. ∎  free (someone) from a phobia or neurosis by gradually exposing the person to the thing that is feared. See systematic desensitization.DERIVATIVES: de·sen·si·ti·za·tion / dēˌsensitəˈzāshən/ n.de·sen·si·tiz·er n.