culpability
noun
cul·pa·bil·i·ty
ˌkəl-pə-ˈbi-lə-tē 
: responsibility for wrongdoing or failure : the quality or state of being culpable
moral/legal/criminal culpability
He refuses to acknowledge his own culpability.
Culpability for our failure to reduce petroleum imports falls across the political spectrum.—
Gregg Easterbrook
Gregg Easterbrook
Examples of culpability in a Sentence
cannot find culpability where there is neither knowledge that a crime has been committed nor evidence of intent to commit a crime
Recent Examples on the Web
The question of the inheritance of culpability, perhaps even the genetic predisposition to sociopathy that one of them fears, is surely worth investigation.
—Jesse Green, New York Times, 14 May 2024
Bruno’s father, the Nazi commandant, feels very guilty about his son’s death—and perhaps for his broader culpability for the atrocities at Auschwitz, too.
—Ellen Wexler, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 May 2024
Mike Feuer bore any culpability for a scandal involving a sham lawsuit and an extortion plot.
—Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2024
The jurors’ decision came Tuesday after heated testimony and roughly 11 hours of deliberations in a case that placed parental responsibility and culpability at its core.
—Jackie Valley, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 Feb. 2024
The police investigation didn't address the utility's potential culpability for the fires, the origin of the blazes or the response by fire crews.
—Sasha Pezenik, ABC News, 5 Feb. 2024
Last year, the American College of Emergency Physicians withdrew a 2009 report that had been the last remaining official medical pillar of support for the theory used increasingly over the prior 15 years to explain away police culpability for many in-custody deaths.
—Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 22 Mar. 2024
Cronin reiterated his culpability for constructing a roster featuring so much youth after largely striking out in the transfer portal with the exception of Stefanovic.
—Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2024
Putin said Saturday that the suspects were apprehended while trying to escape to Ukraine, and Russian state media have suggested that the West is fabricating the claim of Islamic State culpability to protect Kyiv.
—Mary Ilyushina, Washington Post, 25 Mar. 2024
Jesse Green, New York Times, 14 May 2024
Bruno’s father, the Nazi commandant, feels very guilty about his son’s death—and perhaps for his broader culpability for the atrocities at Auschwitz, too.
—Ellen Wexler, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 May 2024
Mike Feuer bore any culpability for a scandal involving a sham lawsuit and an extortion plot.
—Dakota Smith, Los Angeles Times, 12 Apr. 2024
The jurors’ decision came Tuesday after heated testimony and roughly 11 hours of deliberations in a case that placed parental responsibility and culpability at its core.
—Jackie Valley, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 Feb. 2024
The police investigation didn't address the utility's potential culpability for the fires, the origin of the blazes or the response by fire crews.
—Sasha Pezenik, ABC News, 5 Feb. 2024
Last year, the American College of Emergency Physicians withdrew a 2009 report that had been the last remaining official medical pillar of support for the theory used increasingly over the prior 15 years to explain away police culpability for many in-custody deaths.
—Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 22 Mar. 2024
Cronin reiterated his culpability for constructing a roster featuring so much youth after largely striking out in the transfer portal with the exception of Stefanovic.
—Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2024
Putin said Saturday that the suspects were apprehended while trying to escape to Ukraine, and Russian state media have suggested that the West is fabricating the claim of Islamic State culpability to protect Kyiv.
—Mary Ilyushina, Washington Post, 25 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'culpability.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near culpability
Cite this Entry
“Culpability.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/culpability. Accessed 17 May. 2024.
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