Etymologically
Log in

disregard

History Permalink

Etymology and origin of the English word disregard

Confidence
Established
Formation
Derivation
First attested
1641 John Milton, Animadversions upon the Remonstrants Defence
Ultimate origins
English dis-Old French regard
Etymology tree
inherited borrowed derived
English regard
English disregard

Pronunciation

  • UK: /dɪsɹɪˈɡɑːd/[1]
  • US: /dɪsɹɪˈɡɑɹd/[1]

Etymology

It is formed from English dis- + regard,[2][3][4][5][6] the verb from the verb and the noun from the noun.[2][3][4] Barnhart takes the noun either from the verb or as formed independently in the same way,[6] and Johnson derived the verb from the noun.[7] Partridge treats it under ward.[8]

Earliest recorded meaning

As a verb, to treat without due regard or respect; to neglect or slight: 1641, in Milton's Animadversions upon the Remonstrants Defence.[2][6] Merriam-Webster gives an earlier first use, 1613,[4] and Dictionary.com dates the word to 1635–45.[9]

Semantic evolution

In early use the verb meant above all to slight or neglect something that deserved attention; from 1793 the main sense became simply to pay no attention to, to treat as unimportant.[2][3] The noun followed, recorded in 1661 in Glanvill's Vanity of Dogmatizing in the OED,[2] in 1659 in Merriam-Webster,[4] and in 1665 in Barnhart.[6] It too moved from "slighting, undue neglect" to "the act of ignoring".[2][3] Johnson (1755) defined the noun as "slight notice; neglect; contempt" and the verb as "to slight; to neglect; to contemn".[7] In British social-security language, from 1940, disregards are amounts of income or capital left out when a means-tested benefit is calculated.[2][10]

Timeline

  • 1613 – verb, first known use in Merriam-Webster.[4]
  • 1641 – verb, to slight, neglect (Milton).[2][6]
  • 1659 – noun, in Merriam-Webster.[4]
  • 1661 – noun, lack of regard, neglect.[2]
  • 1793 – verb, to pay no attention to.[2]
  • 1940 – noun, income disregarded in assessing a benefit.[2]

Meanings

Verb

  1. To pay no attention to; to ignore: The driver disregarded the warning signs.[10][4][2]
  2. To treat as unworthy of respect or consideration; to slight.[10][4][2]

Noun

  1. Lack of attention or respect; neglect: a reckless disregard for safety.[10][4][2]
  2. (British, often plural) Income or capital that is not counted when a means-tested benefit is calculated.[10][2]

Word family

  • disregarder
  • disregardful
  • disregardable

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  3. ^ a b c d Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  5. ^ Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  6. ^ a b c d e Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
  7. ^ a b Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  8. ^ Partridge, Eric (1966), Origins: A Short Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, 4th ed., London: Routledge & Kegan Paul
  9. ^ Dictionary.com Unabridged (2016), based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
  10. ^ a b c d e Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins
Cite this entry

“Disregard.” Etymologically, 26 Oct. 2026, etymologically.com/en/disregard. Accessed 26 Oct. 2026.

Last edited on . ·