remiss
/rɪˈmɪs
/adjective [predicative]
Lacking care or attention to duty; negligent: it would be very remiss of me not to pass on that information...
- But we'd be remiss if we neglected to spread the word about what might be the Upper East Side's best gourmet bargain.
- Having said all of this though, I believe that it would be remiss of me if I did not challenge Ms Cherry to substantiate her very strong statement.
- The advice isn't entirely remiss, but over the years, such glib counsel has resulted in a preponderance of breezy, aimless books long on episodic family humour but short on meaning.
Synonyms
negligent, neglectful, irresponsible, careless, thoughtless, heedless, unthinking, unmindful, lax, slack, slipshod, lackadaisical, forgetful, inattentive, unheeding;
lazy, dilatory, indolent;
North American derelict
informal sloppy
formal delinquent
Maritime Law barratrous
archaic disregardful, oscitant
Derivatives
remissly
remissness
- I've been remiss in mentioning it, but when it comes to the Internet in general I am the epitome of remissness.
- Anyway, I believe I have attained a level of remissness which is no longer pleasant, and therefore cannot remit any more.
- He also said he wished ‘to have done public justice to the mildness of the present administration and at the same time to have acquitted them… of any charge of remissness in not having previously detected a conspiracy.’
Origin
Late Middle English: from Latin remissus 'slackened', past participle of remittere. The early senses were 'weakened in colour or consistency' and (in describing sound) 'faint, soft'.