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Definition of benign neglect
: an attitude or policy of ignoring an often delicate or undesirable situation that one is held to be responsible for dealing with
Examples of benign neglect in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web Such a major move could anger Chinese Switch gamers whose imports have been treated mostly with benign neglect thus far.
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Kyle Orland, Ars Technica, "Amid in-game Hong Kong protests, Chinese retailers drop Animal Crossing sales," 10 Apr. 2020 Luckily there was plenty to do under the benign neglect of my uncles.
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New York Times, "‘The Adventurer’s Son,’ by Roman Dial: An Excerpt," 18 Feb. 2020 Sometimes the best practice is benign neglect; overwatering is the silent killer.
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Cotton Codinha, Allure, "How Keeping Houseplants Alive Can Contribute to Your Mental Health," 18 Feb. 2020 As our weekends filled with Little League and birthday parties, the yard fell into a state of benign neglect.
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Grace Hwang Lynch, SFChronicle.com, "Growing a lemon tree in the Valley of the Heart’s Delight," 31 Oct. 2019 Tables sat dirty, glasses went empty and customers were doing the uncomfortable shuffle that comes with benign neglect and long intervals with no food.
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Mike Sutter, ExpressNews.com, "Zero-star restaurant review: Savor Bistro loses its way in San Antonio’s Stone Oak," 17 Oct. 2019 After a brief transition, Mr Macri’s central bank adopted a conventional macroeconomic framework, using interest rates to target inflation and treating the exchange rate with benign neglect.
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The Economist, "Were Mauricio Macri’s mainstream policies doomed from the start?," 14 Sep. 2019 Our Revolution was made possible by some remarkable factors, most of which involve the benign neglect of the British government toward the 13 colonies for much of their first 150 years.
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Chris Stirewalt, Fox News, "The new trustbusters," 3 July 2018 After six decades, the rooms were still intact, largely thanks to benign neglect.
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Cynthia Frank, ELLE Decor, "House Tour: A Once-Crumbling Milan Apartment Now Revels In Maximalist Decor," 13 Mar. 2018
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'benign neglect.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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Time Traveler for benign neglect
The first known use of benign neglect was in 1899
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