culpable

Everyday

(formal, law) Deserving blame for something wrong or bad: «He was culpable for the accident». tree →

In the lessons

In law and ethics lessons, being culpable means being responsible for harm and deserving blame; courts decide how culpable someone is, and a person who did not mean harm may be less culpable. In stories and history, characters argue about who is culpable. Phrases: «held culpable», «morally culpable», «culpable negligence», «culpable homicide» (Scotland, law: killing without meaning to murder).

Examples

• The driver was found culpable for the crash. tree →
• Everyone who knew about the bullying and did nothing felt a little culpable. tree →
• Is a child as culpable as an adult for breaking a rule? tree →
• The judge said the company was culpable for the pollution. tree →
• In ethics we discussed when someone is morally culpable. tree →
• She was not culpable, because she did not know the bridge was unsafe. tree →

Note

Formal; in speech say «to blame» or «guilty». Said «KUL-puh-bul». The noun is «culpability». It comes from Latin «culpa», fault, as in «mea culpa» (my fault). The opposite is «blameless» or «innocent».