Word family noun responsibility ≠ irresponsibility adjective responsible ≠ irresponsible adverb responsibly ≠ irresponsibly
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishresponsiblere‧spon‧si‧ble /rɪˈspɒnsəbəl $ rɪˈspɑːn-/ ●●● S2 W2 adjective 1 guilty [not before noun]GUILTYFAULT/BE somebody'S FAULT if someone is responsible for an accident, mistake, crime etc, it is their fault or they can be blamedresponsible for Police believe that the same man is responsible for three other murders in the area.hold somebody responsible (for something) If anything goes wrong, I will hold you personally responsible.the person/people etc responsible We are determined to bring the people responsible to justice.► see thesaurus at guilty2 in charge of [not before noun]RESPONSIBLE having a duty to be in charge of or to look after someone or somethingresponsible for Mills is responsible for a budget of over $5 million. The airline is legally responsible for the safety of its passengers.responsible for doing something He is responsible for recruiting and training new staff.3 causeCAUSE [not before noun] if something is responsible for a change, problem, event etc, it causes itresponsible for The floods were responsible for over a hundred deaths.4 sensibleSENSIBLE sensible and able to make good judgments, so that you can be trusted OPP irresponsible → reliable You can leave the children with Billy – he’s very responsible.responsible adult/citizen It’s time you started acting like a responsible adult.5 → responsible job/position6 → be responsible to somebodyGrammar• Responsible is always an adjective, never a noun: Who is responsible? ✗Don’t say: Who is the responsible?• The person/man/woman etc responsible is the person who has done something, usually something bad: We will catch the person responsible. ✗Don’t say: We will catch the responsible. | We will catch the responsible person.• You say that someone is responsible for something: Who is responsible for this mess?Claire is responsible for marketing. ✗Don’t say: be responsible of somethingExamples from the Corpus
responsible• Supporters say the program helps teens become sexually responsible.• I'm a responsible adult. I can make my own choices.• We never worried about letting Sam babysit our kids - he'd always seemed very responsible and intelligent.• We aim to educate our children to become socially responsible citizens.• He treated me as if I wasn't responsible enough to be given the tools to do my job.• The Los Angeles Times is not responsible for changes in prices, dates or itineraries.• The rest will be part-time, seasonal, or contract workers, responsible for designing and choreographing their own careers and retirements.• He saw that it was this very racism that was responsible for forcing blacks into positions of marginality.• Mrs Williams says that the hospital was responsible for her husband's death.• The defendants argued that they were not responsible for his death, as it could not have been foreseen.• Another discovery from the early space age was the mechanism responsible for raising intense planet-wide dust storms on Mars.• The other driver was responsible for the accident, and he should pay for the damage.• While the work of Prof Harwood is valuable, cocoa butter is not responsible for the popularity of chocolate.• Police believe a local gang is responsible for the recent burglaries.• Individuals will be responsible for their own personal development plans which will be measured against agreed standards of business performance.• Who was responsible for this pleasant girl being effectively unemployable?• I would feel responsible if anything happened to the kids.• Two new programs are being developed to help promote responsible sexual behavior.personally responsible• She would have been held personally responsible and would almost certainly have fallen from office.• Maureen is personally responsible for all the arrangements.• He is held personally responsible for complying with the many rules and regulations that govern its use.• We are, each of us, personally responsible for damaging our environment.• Did this make me personally responsible for more deaths?• Like the sole trader, the partners are personally responsible for paying off any debts the shop may incur.• Most systems have an executive cabinet, with each member directly and personally responsible for some major area of administration.• Now I was not personally responsible for that.legally responsible• Legal remedies can ensure that landlords carry out the works for which they are legally responsible.• Remember, that as the carrier, you remain legally responsible for the actions of your subcontract haulier.• Imagine our horror at the thought that we might now be held legally responsible for the tragic results of an inadequate diet.• The skipper is legally responsible for your safety and has the final say over where you go.• If the Policyholder is legally responsible, there would be cover.responsible adult/citizen• Aim: emphasis upon the responsible citizen, and the idea of service.• Nobody told you to flirt with me like a grown mature responsible adult man would do.• And support us as we live as responsible citizens of this city and nation.• As responsible citizens, you have the duty to, and can, avert these insurance crises.From Longman Business Dictionaryresponsiblere‧spon‧si‧ble /rɪˈspɒnsəbəlrɪˈspɑːn-/ adjective1be responsible for something to be officially in charge of something as part of your job, meaning you must accept the blame if something goes wrongPartners are officially responsible for all the firm’s financial obligations.the City watchdog responsible for regulating fund managers2be responsible to somebody if you are responsible to someone in your job, you have to report your actions, progress etc to themThe Computer Group Manager is responsible to the Head of Computer Development.3responsible job/position etcJOB a job, position etc in which the ability to make good judgements and decisions is importantAs works manager, I had an interesting and responsible job. 