Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Lack of attention, notice, or regard.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun Want of attention; failure to fix the mind attentively on an object or a subject; heedlessness; negligence.
- noun An act of neglect; failure of courtesy.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun Lack of attention, or failure to pay attention; disregard; heedlessness; neglect.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun Want of
attention , or failure topay attention ;disregard ;heedlessness ;neglect . - noun An act of
neglect ;failure ofcourtesy .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun lack of attention
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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I've heard a lot the term inattention blindness used a lot - this is what happens, people have their eyes straight ahead, but they see nothing; they're minds are on the phone and their minds are elsewhere.
A Rubber Door 2009
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The real problem is the inattention from the State towards to those faraway areas.
Global Voices in English » Peru: Cold Temperatures Continue in Puno 2009
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The current 20-40-year-olds probably won't do politics again; they'll do environmental stuff and bike and have kids, and all the Palin types need is inattention from the moderates/progressives to win.
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If inattention is the cause for confusion then that's on the inattentive.
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DEAR DISAPPOINTED: Perhaps this chiropractor's inattention is due more to his lack of organizational skills and less a referendum on your marriage.
Ask Amy washingtonpost.com 2010
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The expression of inattention and noninvolvement exhibited by those who are physically close to an encounter in which they are not participants can be observed in an extreme form at times when an individual could join the encounter as far as its participants are concerned, but finds himself “psychologically” incapable of doing so.
Behavior in Public Places ERVING GOFFMAN 1963
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Habitual inattention is sometimes attributed to great genius, but we cannot endorse that idea.
A Manual of Etiquette with Hints on Politeness and Good Breeding Sophia Orne 1873
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The homegrown Afghan insurgency was defeated in the 2001 invasion but allowed to regroup during several years of what Obama and his advisers call inattention by the Bush administration.
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The homegrown Afghan insurgency was defeated in the 2001 invasion but allowed to regroup during several years of what Obama and his advisers call inattention by the Bush administration.
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The homegrown Afghan insurgency was defeated in the 2001 invasion but allowed to regroup during several years of what Obama and his advisers call inattention by the Bush administration.
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