Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • noun The state or quality of being careless; heedlessness; inattention; negligence.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun The quality or state of being careless; heedlessness; negligence; inattention.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun Lack of care.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun failure to act with the prudence that a reasonable person would exercise under the same circumstances
  • noun the quality of not being careful or taking pains

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English *carelesnes, *carlesnesse, from Old English carlēasnes ("freedom from care, security, carelessness"), equivalent to careless +‎ -ness.

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