responsibility

Pronunciation

• IPA: UK /rɪˌspɒn.səˈbɪl.ə.ti/, US /rɪˌspɑːn.səˈbɪl.ə.t̬i/^[1]

Etymology

It is a derivation, from English responsible + -ity.^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The state of being responsible, accountable or answerable: 1787 in Etymonline and the OED,^[2][4] the mid-18th century in the Shorter Oxford.^[3] Merriam-Webster's Collegiate dates it 1771, and the Unabridged gives a much earlier date, 1642.^[5][6]

Semantic evolution

A charge, trust or duty for which one is responsible is from 1796,^[2][4] and a person for whom one is responsible from 1832.^[4] In the 19th century it was often followed by of (1840), and in the 20th by for (1903).^[2][4]

Timeline

• 1642 – Merriam-Webster's date.^[6]
• 1787 – the state of being responsible.^[2][4]
• 1796 – a duty or trust.^[2][4]
• 1832 – a person in one's charge.^[4]
• 1903 – responsibility for.^[4]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. The state of being responsible or accountable.
2. Something for which one is responsible; a duty or obligation.
3. Reliability; trustworthiness.

Word family

• nonresponsibility

Related words

• respond
• responsible
• response
• irresponsibility

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b 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 Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
5. ^ Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (2003), 11th ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
6. ^ a b Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster