remiss
Americanadjective
-
negligent, careless, or slow in performing one's duty, business, etc..
He's terribly remiss in his work.
- Synonyms:
- neglectful, slack, lax, thoughtless, derelict
-
characterized by negligence or carelessness.
- Synonyms:
- neglectful, slack, lax, thoughtless, derelict
adjective
-
lacking in care or attention to duty; negligent
-
lacking in energy; dilatory
Related Words
See neglect.
Other Word Forms
- overremiss adjective
- overremissly adverb
- overremissness noun
- remissly adverb
- remissness noun
Etymology
Origin of remiss
First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English, from Latin remissus, past participle of remittere “to send back, slacken, relax”; see remit
Explanation
If it's your turn to bring in the coffee and donuts for your early morning meeting, and you forget, then your co-workers can say that you were remiss in fulfilling your responsibility to keep them awake with sugar and caffeine. Don't expect to get much done at your meeting. The adjective remiss is often used in the phrase "remiss in one's duty." The principal was remiss in her duty to tell parents about the incident at school. After the parents heard about it from their kids, the principal received several angry phone calls wondering why the school had been locked down for loose farm animals.
Vocabulary lists containing remiss
300 Most Difficult "SAT" Words
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"The Odyssey" by Homer, Books 1–7
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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.
However, Martinez of Earthjustice noted that NOx is the single-largest category of emissions under the South Coast AQMD’s authority, and said that the agency would be remiss not to take action on it.
From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 4, 2025
Stanton says it would be remiss if the development programme did not compare the two sexes.
From BBC • Feb. 5, 2025
Having just written an entire article about the dangers of universalized single-cause explanations, though, I would be remiss in putting the blame for dysfunction and discontent entirely on the media.
From Slate • Dec. 19, 2024
Still, though, It would be remiss to neglect to acknowledge that one of the film’s leads, Ortega, is a Hispanic actor, hailing from Mexican and Puerto Rican parentage.
From Salon • Sep. 15, 2024
One would be remiss to neglect the greatest unsolved mystery to strike the Yiddish stage, the fate of Molly Lewis.
From "Night Owls" by A.R. Vishny
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.
