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responsibility

[ ri-spon-suh-bil-i-tee ]
/ rɪˌspɒn səˈbɪl ɪ ti /
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See synonyms for: responsibility / responsibilities on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural re·spon·si·bil·i·ties.
the state or fact of being responsible, answerable, or accountable for something within one's power, control, or management.
an instance of being responsible: The responsibility for this mess is yours!
a particular burden of obligation upon one who is responsible: the responsibilities of authority.
a person or thing for which one is responsible: A child is a responsibility to its parents.
reliability or dependability, especially in meeting debts or payments.
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Idioms about responsibility

    on one's own responsibility, on one's own initiative or authority: He changed the order on his own responsibility.

Origin of responsibility

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

OTHER WORDS FROM responsibility

non·re·spon·si·bil·i·ty, noun, plural non·re·spon·si·bil·i·ties.pre·re·spon·si·bil·i·ty, noun, plural pre·re·spon·si·bil·i·ties.self-re·spon·si·bil·i·ty, nounsu·per·re·spon·si·bil·i·ty, noun, plural su·per·re·spon·si·bil·i·ties.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use responsibility in a sentence

  • They assume the non-responsibility of the community for anything beyond keeping the destitute applicant alive.

British Dictionary definitions for responsibility

responsibility
/ (rɪˌspɒnsəˈbɪlɪtɪ) /

noun plural -ties
the state or position of being responsible
a person or thing for which one is responsible
the ability or authority to act or decide on one's own, without supervision
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
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