incumplimiento del deber
/inkumplimjento del debeɾ/from spelling rules
To say dereliction of duty in Spanish, use incumplimiento del deber.
It is the formal term for failing to carry out a duty you are responsible for, used in legal, military and official contexts.
What does it mean word for word?
incumplimiento means failure to carry out or breach, and del deber means of the duty.
Did you know?
- The word deber shares a common ancestor with the English words 'debt' and 'due'.
- In some Spanish-speaking military jurisdictions, incumplimiento del deber can be categorized as a 'crime of omission', where the crime is defined by what the person did not do.
- The word deber is a 'double agent' in Spanish, acting as both a noun meaning 'duty' and a verb meaning 'must' or 'should'.
Examples in context
- Su abandono fue un incumplimiento del deber.His abandonment was a dereliction of duty.
- La empresa sancionó el incumplimiento del deber.The company sanctioned the dereliction of duty.
Example conversation
Two colleagues are discussing a disciplinary case at work.
- MaríaAlejandro, ¿sabes por qué suspendieron al guardia?Alejandro, do you know why the guard was suspended?
- AlejandroSí, María, fue por incumplimiento del deber.Yes, María, it was for dereliction of duty.
- MaríaEs una situación muy seria.It is a very serious situation.
- AlejandroAsí es, no puede quedar impune.That's right, it cannot go unpunished.
Sources
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries deber, del, incumplimiento, CC BY-SA 4.0.
