responsibility
noun
re·spon·si·bil·i·ty
ri-ˌspän(t)-sə-ˈbi-lə-tē 
plural responsibilities
1
: the quality or state of being responsible: such as
a
: moral, legal, or mental accountability
take/accept/claim responsibility for the incident
b
: reliability, trustworthiness
She is completely lacking in responsibility.
The students learned a sense of responsibility with the project.
2
: something for which one is responsible : burden
has neglected his responsibilities
Examples of responsibility in a Sentence
… Landau's piece, examining the fan's, and the journalist's responsibility to rock stars …
—
Lawrence Dietz, Los Angeles Times Book Review, 23 May 1971
A great soprano has a responsibility to her public …
—Robert Evett, Atlantic, September 1970
The responsibility for engineering the line of cars which in 1908 evolved the immortal Model T …
—John Kenneth Galbraith, New York Times Book Review, 28 Feb. 1954
Anthony Burton had once said that this was your responsibility toward society.
—John P. Marquand, Atlantic, Nov. 1947
The boys denied any responsibility for the damage to the fence.
A terrorist group has claimed responsibility for the bombing.
The janitor has many responsibilities.
Mowing the lawn is your responsibility.
She has to deal with a lot of family and work responsibilities.
It is your responsibility to give the company two weeks notice if you decide to leave.
In her new position, she will have much more responsibility.
We have a responsibility to protect the environment.
The government's responsibility is to serve the public.
The principal has responsibility for 450 students and a staff of 35.
Lawrence Dietz, Los Angeles Times Book Review, 23 May 1971
A great soprano has a responsibility to her public …
—Robert Evett, Atlantic, September 1970
The responsibility for engineering the line of cars which in 1908 evolved the immortal Model T …
—John Kenneth Galbraith, New York Times Book Review, 28 Feb. 1954
Anthony Burton had once said that this was your responsibility toward society.
—John P. Marquand, Atlantic, Nov. 1947
The boys denied any responsibility for the damage to the fence.
A terrorist group has claimed responsibility for the bombing.
The janitor has many responsibilities.
Mowing the lawn is your responsibility.
She has to deal with a lot of family and work responsibilities.
It is your responsibility to give the company two weeks notice if you decide to leave.
In her new position, she will have much more responsibility.
We have a responsibility to protect the environment.
The government's responsibility is to serve the public.
The principal has responsibility for 450 students and a staff of 35.
Recent Examples on the Web
And as with all dedicated servers, with great power comes great financial responsibility.
—Gabriel Zamora, PC Magazine, 8 Mar. 2026
House Bill 1620 and Senate Bill 991 would make clear that when state or local law authorizes an inspector general to access records, and those records are necessary to perform official responsibilities, the records custodian must allow inspection.
—Vaughn Stewart, Baltimore Sun, 7 Mar. 2026
Lawmakers should act now to require strong insurance minimums and clearly assign responsibility, treating autonomous vehicle crashes as standard motor vehicle claims handled through ordinary auto insurance — not complex product litigation.
—Chicago Tribune, 7 Mar. 2026
But that's not the utility's responsibility to take on those costs and obligations.
—Alex Crippen, CNBC, 7 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for responsibility
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Gabriel Zamora, PC Magazine, 8 Mar. 2026
House Bill 1620 and Senate Bill 991 would make clear that when state or local law authorizes an inspector general to access records, and those records are necessary to perform official responsibilities, the records custodian must allow inspection.
—Vaughn Stewart, Baltimore Sun, 7 Mar. 2026
Lawmakers should act now to require strong insurance minimums and clearly assign responsibility, treating autonomous vehicle crashes as standard motor vehicle claims handled through ordinary auto insurance — not complex product litigation.
—Chicago Tribune, 7 Mar. 2026
But that's not the utility's responsibility to take on those costs and obligations.
—Alex Crippen, CNBC, 7 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for responsibility
Cite this Entry
“Responsibility.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/responsibility. Accessed 9 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
responsibility
noun
re·spon·si·bil·i·ty
ri-ˌspän(t)-sə-ˈbil-ət-ē
plural responsibilities
1
: the quality or state of being responsible
2
: the quality of being dependable
3
: something for which one is responsible
neglected his responsibilities
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