carelessness - failure to act with the prudence that a reasonable person would exercise under the same circumstancescomparative negligence - (law) negligence allocated between the plaintiff and the defendant with a corresponding reduction in damages paid to the plaintiff concurrent negligence - (law) negligence of two of more persons acting independently; the plaintiff may sue both together or separately contributory negligence - (law) behavior by the plaintiff that contributes to the harm resulting from the defendant's negligence; in common law any degree of contributory negligence would bar the plaintiff from collecting damages criminal negligence, culpable negligence - (law) recklessly acting without reasonable caution and putting another person at risk of injury or death (or failing to do something with the same consequences) dodging, evasion, escape - nonperformance of something distasteful (as by deceit or trickery) that you are supposed to do; "his evasion of his clear duty was reprehensible"; "that escape from the consequences is possible but unattractive" |