responsibility

American  

[ri-spon-suh-bil-i-tee] / rɪˌspɒn səˈbɪl ɪ ti /

noun

• responsibilities
  plural

1. 

   the state or fact of being responsible, answerable, or accountable for something within one's power, control, or management.

   Synonyms:

   accountability, answerability

2. an instance of being responsible.

   The responsibility for this mess is yours!

3. a particular burden of obligation upon one who is responsible.

   the responsibilities of authority.

4. a person or thing for which one is responsible.

   A child is a responsibility to their parents.

5. reliability or dependability, especially in meeting debts or payments.

---

idioms

1. on one's own responsibility, on one's own initiative or authority.

   He changed the order on his own responsibility.

responsibility British  

/ rɪˌspɒnsəˈbɪlɪtɪ /

noun

1. the state or position of being responsible

2. a person or thing for which one is responsible

3. the ability or authority to act or decide on one's own, without supervision

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonresponsibility
  noun
• preresponsibility
  noun
• self-responsibility
  noun
• superresponsibility
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• responsibilities
  plural

Etymology

Origin of responsibility

First recorded in 1780–90; respons(ible) + -ibility

Explanation

A responsibility is something you're required to do as an upstanding member of a community. If you're in a band, it's your responsibility to learn the songs and show up to practice on time. Responsibility comes from the Latin responsus, which means "to respond." There are actually a few different definitions of the noun. It can be another word for "trustworthiness," as in, "He demonstrated his responsibility by showing up to practice on time." And it can be used to describe the social force that motivates us to take on individual responsibilities, as in, "A sense of responsibility drove him to memorize all of the songs."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

responsibility responsibilities

He said the European push to take more responsibility for its defence was making the alliance tougher and more capable.

From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026

SAL said it has a responsibility to safeguard both the singer’s legacy and the people involved in maintaining it.

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 12, 2026

Slaughter is one of those rookies with a lot of responsibility.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 10, 2026

Under a previous UK Labour government, Peter Hain combined cabinet responsibility for Wales and Northern Ireland between 2005 and 2007.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

PPS Please tell me the hawk-chicken isn’t my responsibility too.

From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones

“Today, large-language models have taken over these responsibilities, leading companies to eliminate low-wage ‘starter’ roles.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 13, 2026

Brown taking charge of the June model shutdown in Washington allowed Amodei to focus on customer relationships and other CEO responsibilities, a person familiar with the matter said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026

Lennie Kaplan, a former finance official in Alberta, says the province would be expected to take on a share of Canada's national debt, among many other fiscal challenges and responsibilities.

From BBC ● Oct. 7, 2026

In his resignation statement, Tennessee Department of Correction Commissioner Frank Strada insisted "the Department carried out its responsibilities in accordance with the established protocol."

From Barron's ● Oct. 4, 2026

Even Anne would relax and forget her responsibilities as the oldest.

From "Cheaper by the Dozen" by Frank B. Gilbreth Jr. and Ernestine Gilbreth Carey

Related Words

• authority
• burden
• duty
• guilt
• importance
• liability
• obligation
• power
• restraint
• trust