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Carelessness |
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Carelessness
Carelessness asleep at the switch Off one’s guard; negligent; having slow reflexes. This expression derives from early American railroad terminology. To switch a train is to transfer it from one track to another, and an unaware or negligent worker who was “asleep at the switch” could cause a serious accident. The expression is no longer restricted to railroad usage and can apply to any irresponsible lack of attention which could have adverse consequences. give short shrift To pay little attention or give insufficient time or consideration to a person or matter; to treat in a cursory or perfunctory manner. Shrift is an archaic word for confession or absolution (from the verb shrive). Short shrift originally referred to the brief period prior to an execution during which a prisoner could make a confession to a priest. Short trial, shorter shrift, had been given to the chief criminals. (William Hepworth Dixon, Royal Windsor, 1879) The phrase eventually came into more general use referring to any brief respite or short period of time. Thus “to give short shrift” means to treat summarily or brusquely, giving little of one’s time or energy. Every argument … tells with still greater force against the present measure, and it is hoped that the House of Commons will give it short shrift tonight. (Times, February 15, 1887) a lick and a promise A hasty and perfunctory way of doing something; a half-hearted or nominal compliance with a request or command. In this expression, lick is used in the colloquial sense of ‘a slight and hasty wash,’ implying a lackadaisical or superficial performance of a task. Promise implies an assurance that a more complete and thorough job will be done at some unspecified time in the future. The lassie gi’es a lick and a promise when I tell her to sweep! (E. F. Heddle, Marget at Manse, 1899) slap:bang Hastily, often without consideration of possible consequences; hurriedly; haphazardly. This expression was originally used to describe sleazy eateries and “greasy spoons” where one received fast service by “slapping” his money down to pay for food that was indelicately “banged” onto the table. They lived in the same street, walked to town every morning at the same hour, dined at the same slap-bang every day, and revelled in each other’s company every night. (Charles Dickens, Sketches by Boz, 1837) Thus, by extension, slap-bang came to refer to anything done in a quick, careless, and unceremonious manner. After fooling a man like a child in leading-strings for half a year, to let him go slap-bang, as I call it, in a minute, is an infernal shame. (Theodore Hook, The Parson’s Daughter, 1833) slapdash Carelessly; in a hasty though thoughtless manner; hurriedly; haphazardly. Originally, slapdash was a technique of painting a wall to give it the appearance of wallpaper by “slapping” on a coat of paint and then “dashing” or splashing on spots or blotches of a contrasting color. Although slapdash is frequently applied as a criticism to a writer’s or an artist’s style, it is also applied in other contexts to denote careless haste. I cannot plunge, slapdash, into the middle of events and characters. (Sir George Trevelyan, The Life and Letters of Lord Macaulay 1838) ThesaurusLegend: Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
carelessness noun negligence, neglect, omission, indiscretion, inaccuracy, irresponsibility, slackness, inattention, sloppiness (informal), laxity, thoughtlessness, laxness, remissness The accident was caused by sheer carelessness. Proverbs "Don't throw out the baby with the bathwater" Translations carelessness n (= negligence, heedlessness, of person, worker, work) → Nachlässigkeit f; (of driver) → Unvorsicht(igkeit) f; (of driving) → Leichtsinn m; (of remark) → Gedankenlosigkeit f carelessness [ˈkɛəlɪsnɪs] n (see adj) → disattenzione f, mancanza d'impegno, negligenza, mancanza di tatto Want to thank TFD for its existence? Tell a friend about us, add a link to this page, add the site to iGoogle, or visit the webmaster's page for free fun content. |
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