dereliction

American  

[der-uh-lik-shuhn] / ˌdɛr əˈlɪk ʃən /

noun

1. deliberate or conscious neglect; negligence; delinquency.

   dereliction of duty.

2. the act of abandoning something.

   Synonyms:

   desertion

3. the state of being abandoned.

4. Law. a leaving dry of land by recession of the water line.

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dereliction British  

/ ˌdɛrɪˈlɪkʃən /

noun

1. deliberate, conscious, or wilful neglect (esp in the phrase dereliction of duty )

2. the act of abandoning or deserting or the state of being abandoned or deserted

3. law

   1. accretion of dry land gained by the gradual receding of the sea or by a river changing its course

   2. the land thus left

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Related Words

See neglect.

Etymology

Origin of dereliction

First recorded in 1590–1600; from Latin dērelictiōn- (stem of dērelictiō ) “an abandoning,” equivalent to dērelict(us) ( derelict ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

And in December, Starmer said that it would be a "dereliction of duty" not to engage with Beijing.

From Barron's

A president can only fire Fed board members "for cause," traditionally understood to mean malfeasance or dereliction of duty.

From Barron's

Its absence feels like a big miss or, less charitably, a dereliction of duty.

From Los Angeles Times

“It’s easy to blame me for the dereliction of duty that has been going on here for many, many years before I came into office,” she continued.

From Los Angeles Times

Federal law says that Fed officials can only be removed for "cause," which could be interpreted to mean malfeasance or dereliction of duty.

From Barron's

Related Words

• evasion
• negligence