inattentiveness

noun

as in inattention

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of inattentiveness The player experiences confusion or inattentiveness for less than 15 minutes. — Jennifer Borresen, USA Today, 18 Aug. 2026 Attorneys representing inmates there said the facility’s culture of violence and inattentiveness led to two suicides and at least 10 severe beatings and stabbings in its final year of operation. — Matthew Kelly, Kansas City Star, 10 Mar. 2026 That inattentiveness to cleaning the floor extended to the bottom shelf of a kitchen prep table and the top shelf of a prep table next to the cookline, each shelf dotted with 100 rodent droppings. — David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 19 Dec. 2025 Three moments from yet another winless day in the Windy City laid Pittsburgh's inattentiveness to detail bare for all to see. — CBS News, 25 Nov. 2025 At other times, the result can be both immediate and devastating, as seen in many traffic accidents caused by impatience, inattentiveness, or rashness. — Mary Crossan, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inattentiveness
  1. inattention
  2. forgetfulness
  3. carelessness
  4. inadvertence
  5. inadvertency
  6. negligence
  7. shortsightedness
  8. obliviousness
Noun
  • Washington’s preoccupation with its own domestic politics, inattention to the region’s nuances, and inflated fears of Chinese and Russian advances all made the United States an easy mark for manipulative local powers.
    — MARC LYNCH, Foreign Affairs, 18 Aug. 2026
  • In sports, mind-wandering is often seen as negative because inattention at a crucial moment can lead to disaster.
    — Eric Zillmer, Scientific American, 26 June 2026
Definition of inattention
Noun
  • Goodman says very early Alzheimer’s disease can sometimes resemble ordinary forgetfulness.
    — Lauryn Higgins, Flow Space, 19 Aug. 2026
  • It’s designed for anyone who wants to retain information more effectively, whether that’s preparing for exams, remembering presentations, learning new skills, or simply reducing forgetfulness.
    — StackCommerce Team, PC Magazine, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of forgetfulness
Noun
  • It gets filed alongside carelessness, disorganization and not really trying, and the people who display it often apologize for it as though they’d been caught slacking.
    — Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Either this is an issue of carelessness or a lack of communication between you and the cleaning service.
    — R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of carelessness
Noun
  • As for inventions, accident and inadvertence played a role in the development of Post-it Notes and microwave heating.
    — Amanda Foreman, WSJ, 4 May 2018
  • The history of the game proceeded through intelligence, but also through inadvertence.
    — JAY CASPIAN KANG, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2017
Definition of inadvertence
Noun
  • Again, what is lost is inadvertency and the element of surprise — the sense that the power of the image is independent of the photographer’s plans.
    — TEJU COLE, New York Times, 18 Oct. 2016
Definition of inadvertency
Noun
  • The jury determined that Meta and YouTube were negligent in the design or operation of their respective platforms, and that the negligence was a substantial factor in causing harm to the plaintiff.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Nuisance, negligence and harm to residents The largest set of claims in the lawsuit has to do with arguing that the data center damages residents’ health, futures and quality of life in the areas closest to the 400-acre hyperscale AI factory.
    — Ilana Arougheti Updated August 14, Kansas City Star, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of negligence
Noun
  • That points to the shortsightedness and impracticality of such a bargaining strategy.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 20 July 2026
  • The situation has grown bleaker in the last decade and a half as commercial pressures have ramped up and media consolidation and digital shortsightedness have obliterated arts coverage.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2026
Definition of shortsightedness
Noun
  • Also missing is any clear acknowledgment of Singer’s fear for the horrors in store for Antonapoulos, and the dramatic irony created by Antonapoulos’ own seeming obliviousness to how his life is being upended.
    — Billy J. Stratton, The Conversation, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Feel-good party music is usually rooted in escapism, or simple obliviousness, while socially conscious art tends toward the bleak, especially these days.
    — Will Lynch, Pitchfork, 11 May 2026
Definition of obliviousness

Browse Nearby Words

inattentive
inattentiveness
inaudible
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Cite this Entry

“Inattentiveness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inattentiveness. Accessed 23 Aug. 2026.

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