omission

noun

omis·​sion ō-ˈmi-shən 

ə-

1

a

: something neglected or left undone

There are a few omissions in the list.

b

: apathy toward or neglect of duty

The police officer was reprimanded for the omission of his duty to inform the suspect of his rights.

2

: the act of omitting : the state of being omitted

Her omission from the team was surprising.

Synonyms

• deletion
• elision

Examples of omission in a Sentence

There are a few omissions in the list.

the disk contains a selection of deleted scenes, and a couple of the omissions greatly add to the intelligibility of the movie's plot

Recent Examples on the Web

But nowhere was the competition more pitched, and the volume of surprise omissions as high, as in the limited series field. —Kate Aurthur, Variety, 17 July 2024

To his credit, there is some scientific justification for the omission, too. —Thomas Page, CNN, 16 July 2024

Anyway… Wherever things end up, history won’t be kind to the people in power and the people reporting on them whose framing and omissions left us here. —Harry Siegel, New York Daily News, 13 July 2024

The most glaring omission in the post is that the hottest temperature ever recorded in Canada came in 2021, in British Columbia. —Kate S. Petersen, USA TODAY, 12 July 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English omissioun, from Anglo-French omission, from Late Latin omission-, omissio, from Latin omittere

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

omission

noun

omis·​sion ō-ˈmish-ən 

ə-

1

: something omitted

2

: the act of omitting : the state of being omitted

Legal Definition

omission

noun

omis·​sion ō-ˈmi-shən 

1

: something neglected, left out, or left undone

2

: the act, fact, or state of leaving something out or failing to do something especially that is required by duty, procedure, or law

liable for a criminal act or omission