Reckless
//ˈɹɛkləs// adj, name
adj, name ·Common ·High school level
Definitions
Adjective
- 1 Careless or heedless; headstrong or rash.
- 2 Indifferent or oblivious to danger or the consequences thereof.
"Escalation is the film’s nuclear energy source. It’s there, of course, in the downright lunatic stunts performed by [Tom] Cruise, again defying good sense and his own advancing years to top his previous feats of reckless self-endangerment."
Adjective
- 1 marked by defiant disregard for danger or consequences wordnet
- 2 characterized by careless unconcern wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname.
Example
More examples"The knight is not so much brave as reckless."
Etymology
From Middle English rekles, reckeles, rekkeles, (also recheles), from Old English rēcelēas (“reckless, careless, negligent”), equivalent to reck + -less. Cognate with West Frisian roekeleas (“reckless”), Dutch roekeloos (“reckless”), German Low German ruuklos (“careless”), German ruchlos (“careless, notorious”).
Related phrases
More for "reckless"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.