responsible
adjective
re·spon·si·ble
| \ ri-ˈspän(t)-sə-bəl
\
\
Definition of responsible
1a
: liable to be called on to answer
c
: liable to legal review or in case of fault to penalties
2a
: able to answer for one's conduct and obligations : trustworthy
b
: able to choose for oneself between right and wrong
3
: marked by or involving responsibility or accountability
responsible financial policies
4
: politically answerable
especially
: required to submit to the electorate if defeated by the legislature
—used especially of the British cabinet
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Other Words from responsible
responsibleness
noun
responsibly
\ ri-ˈspän(t)-sə-blē
\
adverb
\
adverb
Synonyms & Antonyms for responsible
Synonyms
accountable, amenable, answerable, liable
Antonyms
irresponsible, nonaccountable, unaccountable
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Examples of responsible in a Sentence
"If you all die of typhoid I won't be responsible!" he snapped. "If you die of dullness, neither will I," Helen echoed in her heart.
— Virginia Woolf, The Voyage Out, 1915
I have long since ceased to cherish any spirit of bitterness against the Southern white people on account of the enslavement of my race. No one section of our country was wholly responsible for its introduction, and, besides, it was recognized and protected for years by the General Government.
— Booker T. Washington, Up from Slavery, 1900, 1901
He resumed our walk with me, passing his hand into my arm. "Then when AM I going back?" I wore, in turning it over, my most responsible air.
— Henry James, The Turn of the Screw, 1898
She is a very responsible worker.
Is he responsible enough to have a car?
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Recent Examples on the Web
Yet the social revolution that Pollard led in the professional game is largely responsible for the sport’s endurance as the country’s most popular spectator sport. — NBC News, "Fritz Pollard: An African American founding father of the NFL," 11 Sep. 2019 Mertesacker, who spent seven years at the club and won three FA Cups, making 221 appearances before retiring at the same time as his manager, has now revealed the manager was not solely responsible for the club's troubles. — SI.com, "Per Mertesacker Reveals What Went Wrong in Arsene Wenger's Final Season at Arsenal," 11 Sep. 2019 What remains unclear is why Trump waited until late Saturday — the day before the meeting at Camp David was to begin — to cancel talks over an attack the Taliban was clearly responsible for that was then three days old. — Washington Post, "Trump says he canceled secret meeting with Afghan president, Taliban at Camp David," 10 Sep. 2019 Some eco-friendly innovations result from NASA simply trying to be environmentally responsible, says Daniel Lockney, who oversees the agency’s technology transfer efforts. — Robin George Andrews, Scientific American, "Can Spaceflight Save the Planet?," 6 Sep. 2019 Rasinger has recently worked with Rhodes and Richard Fairlie, and was also responsible for signing Tap Management’s Grace Carter to Sony. — Hannah Malach, Billboard, "Executive Turntable: Moves at Sony/ATV, Parlophone, Big Machine & More," 6 Sep. 2019 McVay was more responsible for Jared Goff’s development than his protégé. — Paul Daugherty, Cincinnati.com, "Doc's Morning Line: Predicting the Bengals' win total and wondering if UC can beat OSU," 3 Sep. 2019 That 51-yard touchdown sparked a 28-point first quarter that is directly responsible for the 45-21 win over Florida Atlantic. — Stephen Means, cleveland.com, "J.K. Dobbins and Justin Fields will be a lethal running combination, but this will be a learning process," 2 Sep. 2019 Get our daily newsletter Corruption is partly responsible. — The Economist, "Why Colombia’s Pacific coast is so poor," 29 Aug. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'responsible.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for responsible
responsible
adjective
English Language Learners Definition of responsible
—used to describe the person or thing that causes something to happen —usually + for
: having the job or duty of dealing with or taking care of something or someone
: able to be trusted to do what is right or to do the things that are expected or required
See the full definition for responsible in the English Language Learners Dictionary
responsible
adjective
re·spon·si·ble
| \ ri-ˈspän-sə-bəl
\
\
Kids Definition of responsible
1
: getting the credit or blame for acts or decisions
You are responsible for the damage.
2
: reliable
responsible teenagers
3
: needing a dependable person
a responsible job