Translation guide
The failure to take proper care, often leading to harm or damage. In Japanese, this concept is expressed through nouns describing carelessness or legal neglect, verbs for neglecting duties, and adjectives for being careless.
Describing a lack of proper attention or care in everyday situations.
The most common and general term for carelessness or inattention. Can be used in both casual and formal contexts.
彼の不注意で事故が起きた。
The accident happened due to his negligence.
ちょっとした不注意が大きな問題を引き起こすこともある。
Even a little negligence can sometimes cause big problems.
Implies negligence due to laziness or shirking responsibility. Often used for neglecting duties.
職務怠慢で彼は解雇された。
He was fired for negligence of duty.
Carelessness from letting one's guard down, often leading to mistakes or accidents. Common in warnings.
油断すると失敗するよ。
If you let your guard down, you'll make a mistake.
油断大敵。
Unpreparedness is one's greatest enemy. (proverb)
Referring to a breach of duty or failure to meet a standard of care, especially in legal, medical, or professional contexts.
The standard legal term for negligence, implying fault or error. Used in contexts like traffic accidents or medical malpractice.
医師の過失が認められた。
The doctor's negligence was acknowledged.
過失運転致傷罪で起訴された。
He was indicted for negligent driving causing injury.
Loanword from English, used specifically for neglect in caregiving, such as child neglect or elder neglect.
Literally 'breach of duty'. Used in legal contexts to describe negligence as a failure to fulfill an obligation.
安全配慮義務違反が問われた。
They were held liable for breach of the duty of care.
Focusing on the act of failing to do something that should be done.
Verb meaning to neglect or be negligent in doing something. Often used with nouns like 注意 (attention) or 義務 (duty).
注意を怠ったために事故が起きた。
The accident occurred because they neglected to pay attention.
彼は義務を怠った。
He neglected his duties.
To neglect or treat something as unimportant, often leaving it undone or half-done.
安全対策をなおざりにしてはいけない。
You must not neglect safety measures.
Casual verb meaning to leave something unattended or neglected, often implying abandonment.
不注意 is general carelessness, while 過失 is specifically legal or formal negligence implying fault. In everyday conversation, 不注意 is more common. In legal documents, 過失 is the standard term.
There is no single Japanese word that covers all uses of 'negligence'. Choose the term based on context: carelessness (不注意), legal fault (過失), or neglect of duty (怠慢/怠る).
児童ネグレクトは深刻な社会問題だ。
Child neglect is a serious social problem.
He neglected his work and went out to play.