Delinquency
/dɪˈlɪŋ.kwən.si/noun
Failure to do what is required, especially a minor crime or offense; in law, the state of being delinquent.
Did you know?Delinquency comes from Latin legal language built on the same root as words for “offense” and “crime,” but its older sense was simply “failing to perform a duty.”
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*leikw-
“to leave, abandon, be lacking”
Latin
Latin
delinquere
“to leave behind, fail, offend”
Latin
Latin
delinquentia
“a failing, offense, fault”
Old French
Old French
delinquence
“offense, transgression”
Middle English
English
delinquency
“failure, fault, offense”
Modern English
English
delinquency
“failure to meet an obligation; minor criminal behavior”