remiss

American  

[ri-mis] / rɪˈmɪs /

adjective

1. negligent, careless, or slow in performing one's duty, business, etc..

   He's terribly remiss in his work.

   Synonyms:

   neglectful, slack, lax, thoughtless, derelict

2. characterized by negligence or carelessness.

   Synonyms:

   neglectful, slack, lax, thoughtless, derelict

3. lacking force or energy; languid; sluggish.

   Synonyms:

   slow, slothful, dilatory

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remiss British  

/ rɪˈmɪs /

adjective

1. lacking in care or attention to duty; negligent

2. lacking in energy; dilatory

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Related Words

See neglect.

Other Word Forms

• overremiss adjective
• overremissly adverb
• overremissness noun
• remissly adverb
• remissness noun

Etymology

Origin of remiss

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin remissus, past participle of remittere “to send back, slacken, relax”; see remit

Explanation

If it's your turn to bring in the coffee and donuts for your early morning meeting, and you forget, then your co-workers can say that you were remiss in fulfilling your responsibility to keep them awake with sugar and caffeine. Don't expect to get much done at your meeting. The adjective remiss is often used in the phrase "remiss in one's duty." The principal was remiss in her duty to tell parents about the incident at school. After the parents heard about it from their kids, the principal received several angry phone calls wondering why the school had been locked down for loose farm animals.

Example Sentences

Another Labour MP, Stella Creasy, said it would be "remiss" of the government to ignore the concerns of her colleagues.

From BBC • May 23, 2025

Having just written an entire article about the dangers of universalized single-cause explanations, though, I would be remiss in putting the blame for dysfunction and discontent entirely on the media.

From Slate • Dec. 19, 2024

But I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the many guest stars on this series, a who’s who of comedy appeared over the six seasons.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 16, 2024

Still, though, It would be remiss to neglect to acknowledge that one of the film’s leads, Ortega, is a Hispanic actor, hailing from Mexican and Puerto Rican parentage.

From Salon • Sep. 15, 2024

“Hana, you must shake out the tatami when you are back from Kobe!” she exclaimed, as if Hanako had been remiss.

From "A Place to Belong" by Cynthia Kadohata