What does remiss mean?
Word: Remiss
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Remiss means not giving a duty the care and attention it needs.
How do you spell remiss?
Syllables: re - miss
Tricky part: The word closes with a double s. Students who hear a short, light ending often write remis.
Watch out for: remis, remisse
Memory tip: If you are remiss, you miss something you should have done, so finish with the same two letters as miss.
Remiss in a sentence
Example 1: I was remiss in not replying to your invitation sooner.
Example 2: The captain felt he had been remiss in forgetting the team sheet.
Example 3: Nobody could call our monitor remiss, for she checks the windows every evening.
Fun Fact
Although it looks like a relative of the verb miss, this word is not connected to it. It comes from a Latin word meaning 'slackened', so a remiss person has gone slack about a task.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
remmiss
a) r
b) s
c) e
d) m
Show answer
d) m. A letter has been doubled at the start of the second syllable, where only one belongs.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
It would be rimiss of me not to thank the parents who gave up their weekend to paint the school library.
a) parents
b) rimiss
c) weekend
d) library
Show answer
b) rimiss. The first syllable is spelt as in return.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word remiss as used in the sentence:
The secretary admitted she had been remiss about keeping the club's accounts up to date.
a) lax
b) negligent
c) diligent
d) careless
Show answer
c) diligent. A secretary who kept the accounts carefully would be diligent; the other three words describe her slip.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one word in the list is spelt correctly. Choose its meaning.
1. remiss 2. ostentatous 3. taciturne 4. ephemerel
a) failing to do a task as well as you should
b) lasting a very short time
c) saying very little
d) showing off wealth to impress people
Show answer
a) failing to do a task as well as you should. The long adjectives are each a letter out: ostentatious lost an i, taciturn gained an e, and ephemeral wants an a.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Someone says, 'It was remiss of me.' What are they doing?
a) boasting about a recent prize
b) asking for a higher salary
c) owning up to a small failure
d) describing a holiday abroad
Show answer
c) owning up to a small failure
2. Which employee could fairly be described this way?
a) a librarian who never records returned books
b) a cook who tastes every dish before serving
c) a driver who always arrives ten minutes early
d) a clerk who files each letter on the same day
Show answer
a) a librarian who never records returned books
