omission

noun

omis·​sion ō-ˈmi-shən 

ə-

1

a

: something neglected or left undone

There are a few omissions in the list.

b

: apathy toward or neglect of duty

The police officer was reprimanded for the omission of his duty to inform the suspect of his rights.

2

: the act of omitting : the state of being omitted

Her omission from the team was surprising.

Synonyms

• deletion
• elision

Examples of omission in a Sentence

There are a few omissions in the list.

the disk contains a selection of deleted scenes, and a couple of the omissions greatly add to the intelligibility of the movie's plot

Recent Examples on the Web

However, the omission sparked a strong reaction from political figures that Moscow was getting special treatment. —John W. Dean, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Apr. 2025

For taxpayers, this means fewer loopholes, faster audits and a higher chance of getting flagged for errors or omissions. —Robin Singh, Forbes.com, 7 Apr. 2025

Their final report, some 200 pages in length, includes not a single testimonial from a traditional user of the leaves, an egregious omission that apparently gave no one pause. —Wade Davis, Rolling Stone, 6 Apr. 2025

The omission of the letter S, a tradition that began with Mr. Longo, continued. —Lyna Bentahar, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English omissioun, from Anglo-French omission, from Late Latin omission-, omissio, from Latin omittere

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Rhymes for omission

• addition
• admission
• ambition
• attrition
• audition
• clinician
• cognition
• coition
• commission
• condition
• contrition
• dentition

Kids Definition

omission

noun

omis·​sion ō-ˈmish-ən 

ə-

1

: something omitted

2

: the act of omitting : the state of being omitted

Legal Definition

omission

noun

omis·​sion ō-ˈmi-shən 

1

: something neglected, left out, or left undone

2

: the act, fact, or state of leaving something out or failing to do something especially that is required by duty, procedure, or law

liable for a criminal act or omission