irresponsible

[ ir-i-spon-suh-buhl ]

/ ˌɪr ɪˈspɒn sə bəl /

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adjective

said, done, or characterized by a lack of a sense of responsibility: His refusal to work shows him to be completely irresponsible.

not capable of or qualified for responsibility, as due to age, circumstances, or a mental deficiency.

not responsible, answerable, or accountable to higher authority: irresponsible as a monarch.

noun

an irresponsible person.

Nearby words

Origin of irresponsible

First recorded in 1640–50; ir-² + responsible

SYNONYMS FOR irresponsible

1. unreliable, undependable, thoughtless.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR irresponsible ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formsir·re·spon·si·bil·i·ty, ir·re·spon·si·ble·ness, nounir·re·spon·si·bly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for irresponsibility

Next, add the vices of a rentier state: laziness, irresponsibility, a sense of entitlement, and ignorance.
It’s Not the USA that Made Libya the Disaster it is Today|Ann Marlowe|August 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
To treat Islam as one evil enterprise “seems to me to be the height of inaccuracy and irresponsibility,” he told me forcefully.
The End of Us And Them: David Cannadine’s Quest to Unite History|Jimmy So|May 10, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Fairly or not, many people see that kind of amplitude of girth as a sign of irresponsibility or lack of discipline or something.
The Christie Girth|Michael Tomasky|December 14, 2012|DAILY BEAST
My colorful choices do not indicate any irresponsibility associated with how I handle children.
Pornstar Aurora Snow on the Sasha Grey School Controversy|Aurora Snow|December 21, 2011|DAILY BEAST

Hessler, thanks to the Post, is now the poster child for selfishness, immaturity, and irresponsibility at Occupy Wall Street.
Occupy Wall Street: The New York Post's Bogus Coverage|Emily Atkin, Matthew DeLuca|November 10, 2011|DAILY BEAST
He was restless, it seemed, and after months of irresponsibility, the thought of work was bothering him badly.
Kenny|Leona Dalrymple
Their prayers had unnerved him, had got into that corner of his nature where youth and its irresponsibility loitered yet.
The Weavers, Complete|Gilbert Parker
The order of things had been broken, and he was at the mercy of an irresponsibility.
Mortal Coils|Aldous Huxley
Nevertheless, their life tenure and irresponsibility required that some limit should be fixed to their powers.
The Life of John Marshall Volume 4 of 4|Albert J. Beveridge
He had the idea that what Edward needed, in order to fit him for the society of Leonora, was a touch of irresponsibility.
The Good Soldier|Ford Madox Ford

British Dictionary definitions for irresponsibility

irresponsible

/ (ˌɪrɪˈspɒnsəbəl) /

adjective

not showing or done with due care for the consequences of one's actions or attitudes; reckless

not capable of bearing responsibility

archaic not answerable to a higher authority for one's actions

Derived Formsirresponsibility or irresponsibleness, nounirresponsibly, 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 irresponsibility

irresponsibility

1818; see irresponsible + -ity.

irresponsible

adj.

1640s, "not legally answerable for conduct or actions," from assimilated form of in- (1) "not, opposite of" + responsible. Meaning "not acting with a sense of responsibility" is from 1680s. Related: Irresponsibly.

irresponsible

adjective

noun

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Nearby words

Origin of irresponsible

Examples from the Web for irresponsibility

irresponsible

adjective

irresponsibility

irresponsible