breakdown of responsibilities

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "breakdown of responsibilities" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when discussing the division of tasks or duties among individuals or groups within an organization or project. Example: "The project manager provided a detailed breakdown of responsibilities to ensure everyone knew their roles."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Formal & Business

Science

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

2 human-written examples

It's also an example of how there isn't a clear breakdown of responsibilities when it comes to this partnership – both companies are contributing to various elements, and Oculus is doing as much on the hardware side as it is with software.

TechCrunch

It specifies actions in the areas of child protection, education, child and maternal health and HIV/AIDS, and proposes a breakdown of responsibilities for the national assembly, the government, civil society, the private sector, local leaders and parents.

Unicef

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

57 human-written examples

"What led to this disaster was a breakdown of responsibility on the part of BP and perhaps others, including Transocean and Halliburton," he said.

The New York Times

The general thesis of the column was that a near-total breakdown of responsibility at every link in our financial chain got us here.

The New York Times

That's how we got here — a near total breakdown of responsibility at every link in our financial chain, and now we either bail out the people who brought us here or risk a total systemic crash.

The New York Times

In examining the role of the commercial sex industry in explaining country HIV/AIDS infection rates we may uncover the real reason for the pandemic, a breakdown of the responsibilities of a brother to his sister, a father to his daughter and a husband to his wife.

Plosone

The implication is that the violence that afflicts black America reflects a failure of lower-class black culture, a breakdown of personal responsibility, a pathological trait of a criminally inclined subgroup — not a problem with social and institutional roots that needs to be addressed through collective effort well beyond the boundaries of black communities.

The New York Times

For Chuck Cornell, these stories represent a colossal breakdown of collective responsibility.

Huffington Post

"It's about the breakdown in communications or the lack of understanding of responsibilities".

The New York Times

"There has been a catastrophic breakdown of the world's collective responsibility," said Fran Equiza, a regional director at Oxfam, one of the world's largest aid organizations.

The New York Times

The lecture was titled "Group Think, Personal Responsibility and the Breakdown of Moral Order: The Crisis at Penn State".

The New York Times - Sports

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "breakdown of responsibilities" when you want to emphasize the act of analyzing how duties are allocated, especially when uncovering potential inefficiencies.

Common error

Avoid using "breakdown of responsibilities" when you actually mean a "breakdown in responsibility", which refers to a failure or lapse in someone's duty. The former refers to the act of dividing up the duties, while the latter implies negligence.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "breakdown of responsibilities" functions primarily as a noun phrase. It refers to the act of analyzing and dividing duties or tasks. Ludwig AI identifies it as a valid and usable phrase for describing the allocation of tasks, roles, or duties within a team or organization.

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

News & Media

33%

Formal & Business

33%

Science

33%

Less common in

Wiki

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Social Media

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The phrase "breakdown of responsibilities" is a grammatically correct and usable phrase in English, albeit relatively uncommon. As Ludwig AI indicates, it effectively describes the division and allocation of tasks. Its use is appropriate in professional and neutral contexts, such as business and project management. When employing this phrase, ensure that the context makes it clear what is being divided and among whom, avoiding confusion with "breakdown in responsibility", which has a distinct and opposite meaning. Consider alternatives such as "allocation of responsibilities" or "division of responsibilities" for subtle variations in meaning.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

allocation of responsibilities

Focuses on the assignment of duties to specific individuals or groups.

division of responsibilities

Emphasizes the separation of duties into distinct parts.

distribution of responsibilities

Highlights the spreading of duties across a group.

clarification of responsibilities

Stresses the importance of making duties clear and unambiguous.

demarcation of responsibilities

Implies a clear boundary or separation between different duties.

fragmentation of responsibilities

Suggests that duties have been divided into many small parts, potentially causing inefficiency.

delegation of responsibilities

Focuses on the act of entrusting duties to others.

reallocation of responsibilities

Implies a reassignment or redistribution of existing duties.

delineation of responsibilities

Similar to demarcation, but may suggest a more detailed and careful outlining of duties.

apportionment of responsibilities

Focuses on how responsibilities are proportionally assigned.

FAQs

How can I use "breakdown of responsibilities" in a sentence?

You can use "breakdown of responsibilities" to describe how tasks are divided within a team or organization. For example, "The project manager provided a detailed breakdown of responsibilities to ensure everyone knew their roles."

What's a good alternative to "breakdown of responsibilities"?

Alternatives include "allocation of responsibilities", "division of responsibilities", or "distribution of responsibilities", depending on the specific context.

What's the difference between "breakdown of responsibilities" and "breakdown in responsibility"?

"Breakdown of responsibilities" refers to the act of dividing or analyzing duties, while "breakdown in responsibility" signifies a failure or lapse in fulfilling those duties. They have opposite meanings.

Is "breakdown of responsibilities" formal or informal language?

The phrase "breakdown of responsibilities" is suitable for both formal and neutral contexts, such as business reports, news articles, and academic papers. However, consider more straightforward terms like "division of responsibilities" in more informal conversations.