negligence

Etymology

From Middle English necligence, negligence, from Old French negligence, from Latin neglegentia.

noun

1. The state of being negligent.
   negligence while driving
   The Woodwalton signalman, Rose, who was severely censured in Captain Tyler's report, behaved with great negligence. 1946 January and February, T. S. Lascelles, “A Series of False Signals”, in Railway Magazine, page 43
2. (law, singular only) The tort whereby a duty of reasonable care was breached, causing damage: any conduct short of intentional or reckless action that falls below the legal standard for preventing unreasonable injury.
3. (law, uncountable) The breach of a duty of care: the failure to exercise a standard of care that a reasonable person would have in a similar situation.