- care|less
- care|less «KAIR lihs», adjective.1. not thinking what one says or not watching what one does; not taking enough pains; not careful: »
That careless boy broke the cup. A careless mistake ruined the experiment.
2. done without enough thought or effort; not exact or thorough: »careless work.
SYNONYM(S): headless, inaccurate, negligent.3. artless; unstudied: »to flop into a chair with careless ease; ... one evening, as he framed the careless rhyme (James Beattie).
4. not caring or troubling; indifferent: »He has a careless attitude toward his homework, rarely getting it done on time…careless their merits or their faults to scan (Oliver Goldsmith); ... careless of mankind (Tennyson).
5. without worry; happy: »Thus wisely careless, innocently gay, Cheerful he played the trifle, Life, away (Alexander Pope).
SYNONYM(S): untroubled, gay.–care´less|ly, adverb.–care´less|ness, noun.Synonym Study 1 Careless, unthinking, heedless, thoughtless mean exhibiting lack of thought, interest, or attention. Careless emphasizes being unconcerned about responsibilities or obligations, and thus offhanded or light-hearted, negligent or lazy: »His attire was disarrayed and careless. She was careless about her duties to her family.
Unthinking implies being unreflecting and thus inconsiderate, unwise, or the like: »An unthinking leader has put us in this unfortunate predicament.
Heedless denotes being inattentive, unobservant, and without proper regard: »Heedless of the gathering clouds, he had taken no raincoat nor umbrella. One heedless movement on the ice slope sent him hurtling over the precipice. he boy is utterly heedless of advice.
Thoughtless implies lack of forethought and thus being without regard or consideration for others: »His thoughtless conduct got us all into trouble.
Useful english dictionary. 2012.