responsabile

Responsabile is an Italian adjective meaning responsible or accountable. It also functions as a noun to denote a person who is in charge or who has responsibility for a task or area. In everyday and professional use, it appears in phrases such as responsabile della sicurezza (safety officer) or responsabile di progetto (project manager).

Etymology and form. The term derives from Latin responsabilis, formed from respondere and the suffix -ibilis, passing into Italian through medieval and early modern usage. In Italian, the adjective responsabile has the same form for masculine and feminine singular, and its plural is responsabili. For example, il responsabile and la responsabile refer to a male or female person in charge; i responsabili or le responsabili are used for plural.

Usage. As an adjective, responsabile describes someone who acts with accountability, reliability, or duty, as in una persona responsabile. As a noun, it designates an official or a designated owner of a task, such as the responsabile della gestione or il responsabile della sicurezza. In legal or formal contexts, related terms such as responsabilità (responsibility or liability) and responsabile civile or responsabile penale may appear, reflecting different dimensions of accountability.

Cognates and equivalents. Similar terms exist in other Romance languages—responsable in French, responsável in Portuguese, responsable in Spanish—with closely related meanings centered on accountability and oversight.

See also. Responsibility, accountability, liability, duty.