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irrespective

[ir-i-spek-tiv]
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adjective
  1. without regard to something else, especially something specified; ignoring or discounting (usually followed by of): Irrespective of my wishes, I should go.
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Origin of irrespective

First recorded in 1630–40; ir-2 + respective
Related formsir·re·spec·tive·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for irrespective

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Let us see what constitutes infidelity, irrespective of marriage.

  • They are implacable and deadly foes of all humanity, irrespective of planet or race.

    Spacehounds of IPC

    Edward Elmer Smith

  • It was like a lovely incantation, drawing him irrespective of his will.

    The Huntress

    Hulbert Footner

  • I couldn't go on caring about anybody, irrespective of their conduct, just because they were they.

  • Moreover, this rule is irrespective of fraud, and is not confined to evidence.

    The Path of the Law

    Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.

British Dictionary definitions for irrespective

irrespective

adjective
  1. irrespective of (preposition) without taking account of; regardless of
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adverb
  1. informal regardless; without due considerationhe carried on with his plan irrespective
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Derived Formsirrespectively, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for irrespective

adj.

1620s (implied in irrespectively), "disrespectful," from assimilated form of in- (1) "not, opposite of" + respective. Meaning "without taking account of (something)" is from 1690s. Main modern use is adverbial ("irrespective of"), attested from 1839.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper