Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Synonyms

responsibility

American  
[ri-spon-suh-bil-i-tee] / rɪˌspɒn səˈbɪl ɪ ti /

noun

plural

responsibilities

  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.

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

"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

Other Word Forms

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

Etymology

Origin of responsibility

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

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The SSS website notes that the change "transfers responsibility for registration from individual men to SSS" through integration with other federal data sources, which it believes will result in a "streamlined" process.

From BBC • Apr. 9, 2026

Sharp said she’s been compelled to put so many hours into this work because she feels a responsibility to do so for the future health of her young daughter and husband.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 8, 2026

“You feel an extra sense of responsibility playing somebody so young who is fighting for something that is bigger than them,” she says.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 8, 2026

"She's taking responsibility for her actions," her lawyer Mark Geragos told AFP earlier.

From Barron's • Apr. 8, 2026

“Think of the responsibility which you are asking me to take!” the czar told his foreign minister.

From "The War to End All Wars: World War I" by Russell Freedman

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.