Meanings
plural negligences
- uncountableusuallyThe state of being negligent.
negligence while driving
1 more example
The Woodwalton signalman, Rose, who was severely censured in Captain Tyler's report, behaved with great negligence.
1946 January and February, T. S. Lascelles, “A Series of False Signals”, in Railway Magazine, page 43 - uncountableusuallylawThe breach of a duty of care: the failure to exercise a standard of care that a reasonable person would have in a similar situation.
Synonyms & antonyms
nounfailure to act with the prudence that a reasonable person would exercise under the same circumstances
nounthe trait of neglecting responsibilities and lacking concern
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinneglegentia
- Old Frenchnegligence
- Middle Englishnecligence
- Englishnegligence
From Middle English necligence, negligence, from Old French negligence, from Latin neglegentia.
More words from Middle English, Old French, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek ἀμέλεια
- ἀμέλεια (améleia)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Bengali গাফলাতি
- গাফলাতি (gaflati)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Bulgarian нехайство, немарливост
- нехайство (nehajstvo)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- немарливост (nemarlivost)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Catalan negligència
- negligèncialaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Chinese Mandarin 過失 /过失, 疏忽
- 過失 /过失 (guòshī)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- 疏忽 (shūhu)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- 失職 /失职 (shīzhí)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Czech nedbalost
- nedbalostlaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Dutch nalatigheid, achteloosheid
- nalatigheidlaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- achteloosheidlaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Finnish välinpitämättömyys, piittaamattomuus
- välinpitämättömyysstate of being negligent
- piittaamattomuusstate of being negligent
- tuottamustort
- huolimattomuuslaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- heitteillejättölaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
French négligence coupable
- négligence coupablelaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
German Nachlässigkeit, Unachtsamkeit
- Nachlässigkeitstate of being negligent
- Unachtsamkeitstate of being negligent
- Fahrlässigkeitlaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Greek αμέλεια
- αμέλεια (améleia)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Hebrew רַשְׁלָנוּת, רַשְׁלָנוּת
- רַשְׁלָנוּת (rashlanút)tort
- רַשְׁלָנוּת (rashlanút)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Italian negligenza
- negligenzalaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Japanese 過失, 疎か
- 過失 (kashitsu)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- 疎か (orosoka)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Korean 과실, 소홀
- 과실 (gwasil)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- 소홀 (sohol)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Latin indiligentia, neglegentia
- indiligentialaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- neglegentialaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- incūrialaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Norwegian Bokmål uaktsomhet
- uaktsomhetlaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Polish niedbalstwo
- niedbalstwolaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Portuguese negligência
- negligêncialaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Romanian neglijență, delăsare
- neglijențălaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- delăsarelaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Russian хала́тность
- хала́тность (xalátnostʹ)law: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Spanish negligencia, pigricia
- negligenciastate of being negligent
- pigriciastate of being negligent
- negligencialaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Tagalog kutalay
- kutalaylaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Turkish ihmal
- ihmallaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Vietnamese tính cẩu thả, sự bất cẩn
- tính cẩu thảlaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
- sự bất cẩnlaw: failure to exercise a standard of care (law)
Cite this entry
negligence. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/negligence
“negligence.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/negligence. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “negligence,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/negligence.
Source: negligence on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.