accountability
noun
Simple meaning
Being answerable for your actions and their results.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
uhkowntuhbihlihteeSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
əˈkaʊntəbɪlɪti
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
An open determination of one's responsibility for something and imposition of consequences.
The state of being accountable; liability to be called on to render an account or give an explanation; liability to be held responsible or answerable for something.
An acceptance of good faith of one's responsibility for something and of its consequences.
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: An open determination of one's responsibility for something and imposition of consequences.
'Accountability' emphasizes taking responsibility for your actions, especially when there are consequences involved. It goes beyond mere responsibility by implying an expectation to explain and potentially face judgment.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Matter-of-fact
- Usage feel
- Neutral and straightforward
Where you'll really hear it
Business Meeting
“We need to ensure greater accountability within the sales team.”
News Report
“The public demands accountability from elected officials for the budget deficit.”
Team Discussion
“Everyone on the project must have clear accountability for their tasks.”
Nearby words
- answerability , rarer, so it draws attention
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use accountability
- “Employees are taking more accountability for their project outcomes.”
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More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: open determination of one's responsibility for something and imposition of consequences
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.