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.

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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

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

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

Inflected Forms

noun

• 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

Pauken’s lawyer said his client accepted responsibility for working as an agent for China without first completing required U.S. government forms.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 5, 2026

But the bigger lie is Shirley presenting himself as a “journalist,” when he eschews basic responsibility to the facts.

From Salon • Jun. 5, 2026

To ground this heavy computational architecture in environmental responsibility, the Large Nature Model is hosted by a dedicated Google Cloud server cluster in Oregon running on 87% carbon-free renewable energy.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 5, 2026

Then you can inform your daughter so she’s prepared for the responsibility should you become incapacitated or die.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 4, 2026

Your Gran said that since it was for my team, it was my responsibility.

From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas

Related Words

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