Margo's Kitchen

Have you ever forgotten to do something important and felt bad about it? If so, you might have been a little remiss!

The word “remiss” means being careless or failing to do something that you were supposed to do. It’s often used when someone forgets to do their job, misses an important task, or isn’t accomplishing what they should be doing.

For example, if a student forgets to do their homework or doesn’t turn in an assignment on time, a teacher might say they were remiss. It’s a way of saying, “You didn’t take care of your responsibilities.”

Here’s an example sentence: “I was remiss in not calling my friend on her birthday,” meaning that perhaps I forgot or I didn’t make the effort to do it.

Another example sentence comes from, A Little Girl In Old Boston, by Amanda Minnie Douglas.

And just then Uncle Leverett and Warren came in, and there was a shaking of hands, and Uncle Leverett said, “Well, I declare! The sight of you, Win, is good for sore eyes – well ones, too.”

“I am rather remiss in a social way, I must confess. I’ll try to do better. The years fly around so, I have always felt sorry that I saw so little of Cousin Charles until that last sad year.”

Being remiss doesn’t always mean that you did something wrong on purpose; it just means that you didn’t do it when you were supposed to or in the way you should have.

When you forget something important, you may feel “remiss” for having dropped the ball!