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.

OTHER WORDS FOR responsibility

1 answerability, accountability.

See synonyms for responsibility on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

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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.

How to use responsibility in a sentence

We see detoxing as a path to transcendence, a symbol of modern urban virtue and self-transformation through abstinence.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Stephanie Giorgio, a classical musician, credits The Class for helping her cope with anxiety, focus, fear, and self-doubt.
How Taryn Toomey’s ‘The Class’ Became New York’s Latest Fitness Craze|Lizzie Crocker|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
For someone with anorexia, self-starvation makes them feel better.
How Skinny Is Too Skinny? Israel Bans ‘Underweight’ Models|Carrie Arnold|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I went into the audition as Fericito, the Venezuelan percussionist, and then I did a self-defense expert.
Coffee Talk with Fred Armisen: On ‘Portlandia,’ Meeting Obama, and Taylor Swift’s Greatness|Marlow Stern|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST

Those who come to the Dinner Party are self-selecting; they do want to talk about it.
Everyone at This Dinner Party Has Lost Someone|Samantha Levine|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
It seemed to free her of a responsibility which she had blindly assumed and for which Fate had not fitted her.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories|Kate Chopin
Let the thought of self pass in, and the beauty of great action is gone, like the bloom from a soiled flower.
Pearls of Thought|Maturin M. Ballou
Now this setting up of an orderly law-abiding self seems to me to imply that there are impulses which make for order.
Children's Ways|James Sully
At present, Louis was too self-absorbed by the struggles within him, to look deep into what was passing around him.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
But to wave this discourse of Heathens, how many self-contradicting principles are there held among Christians?
The Life and Most Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe, of York, Mariner (1801)|Daniel Defoe

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

responsibility

OTHER WORDS FOR responsibility

Idioms about responsibility

Origin of responsibility

OTHER WORDS FROM responsibility

Words related to responsibility

How to use responsibility in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for responsibility