recklessness
REK-luss-nuss
/ˈrɛk.ləs.nəs/
Behavior that shows a lack of care about the consequences of actions; conscious disregard of a substantial and unjustifiable risk.
Higher degree of fault than negligence: the person knows the risk exists but deliberately chooses to ignore it.
The story behind the word. From Old English recceleas ('careless or heedless'), combining reccan ('to care, heed, or reckon') with -leas ('without'). To act with recklessness is literally to act without caring about risks.
Word relationships
- rashness: Rashness implies foolish haste, whereas recklessness emphasizes conscious disregard of dangerous risks.
- audacity: Audacity emphasizes bold daring, while recklessness focuses on dangerous indifference to consequences.
- prudence: Prudence is cautious foresight and careful management of risk.
- caution: Caution is deliberate care taken to avoid danger or mistakes.
Commonly confused with
- negligence: Negligence is failing to be reasonably careful; recklessness is consciously ignoring a known danger.
Word family
- reckless (adjective): Heedless of danger or consequences
- recklessly (adverb): In a reckless manner
Collocations
- recklessness standard
- gross recklessness
- display recklessness
- wanton recklessness
Example sentences
- "Driving at double the speed limit in a dense fog demonstrated complete recklessness." Criminal traffic court
- "The court found that ignoring safety warnings constituted deliberate recklessness rather than simple negligence." Corporate liability suit
Memory hook
RECKLESS = WRECK-less? No, acting reckless leads straight to a WRECK! Knowingly driving toward a wreck.
When not to use
Do not use for simple inadvertent oversight or accidental slips; use 'negligence' instead.
Fun facts
- In criminal law, proving recklessness often elevates a charge from simple negligence to gross criminal liability.
Related words
Take your vocabulary further with LangBlitz
Our English vocabulary app: FSRS spaced repetition, 5,000+ curated words across 119 topic groups, CEFR A1 to C2. Explore your mastery with the beautiful Vocabulary World feature.