recklessness
recklessness Lexical Profile
recklessness Game Scores & Validity
• noun
The quality or state of acting without thinking or caring about the consequences of an action, especially when it brings danger or harm.
"The driver's sheer recklessness on the icy highway endangered everyone on the road."
In law, the conscious and unjustifiable disregard of a substantial risk that one's conduct may cause harm or result in an unlawful outcome.
"The prosecutor argued that the company's failure to inspect the faulty equipment amounted to criminal recklessness."
Word Nuance & Usage
In legal contexts, recklessness is distinct from ordinary negligence: negligence is a failure to exercise reasonable care, whereas recklessness involves consciously disregarding a known and substantial risk.
• Rhymes for recklessness
Word Origin & Etymology
Derived from Old English 'reccan' (to care, heed, or pay attention to), combined with the privative suffix '-less' and the noun-forming suffix '-ness', literally meaning the state of being without care or heed.