accuse

1 of 2

verb

ac·​cuse ə-ˈkyüz 

accused; accusing

transitive verb

1

: to charge with a fault or offense : blame

He accused her of being disloyal.

2

: to charge with an offense judicially or by a public process

He was accused of murder.

intransitive verb

: to bring an accusation

accuser

ə-ˈkyü-zər 

noun

accuser

2 of 2

noun

ac·​cus·​er ə-ˈkyü-zər 

plural -s

: one that accuses

specifically : one that formally accuses another of a crime

Synonyms of accuse

Verb

• indict
• blame
• charge
• sue
• prosecute

Examples of accuse in a Sentence

Verb

she was accused of lying on the employment application

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Maher Assad was a former commander of the Syrian military’s 4th Armored Division - which Syrian opposition activists have accused of killings, torture, extortion and drug trafficking, in addition to running its own detention centers. — CNN Money, 11 Aug. 2026

Rahmanullah Lakanwal, a 30-year-old Afghan national accused in the attack, has pleaded not guilty. — Steven Beynon, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026

Barnes has not addressed the allegations and has not been accused of any crimes. — Caroline Linton, CBS News, 11 Aug. 2026

In dropping the charges, Pirro’s office accused the Interior Department of only providing information that suggested the pool damage was due to a contractor error after her office had already charged Hearn. — Conor Murray, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English acusen, accusen, borrowed from Anglo-French accuser, acuser, borrowed from Latin accūsāre "to blame, censure, charge with a crime," from ad- ad- + -cūsāre, verbal derivative of causa "legal case, reason, cause" — more at cause entry 1

Noun

Middle English accusour, acusere, borrowed from Anglo-French accusour, from accuser "to accuse entry 1" + -our -or entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for accuse

• accrues
• aircrews
• amuse
• bamboos
• breakthroughs
• canoes
• cashews
• chartreuse
• confuse
• construes
• defuse
• ensues

Kids Definition

accuse

verb

ac·​cuse ə-ˈkyüz 

accused; accusing

: to blame for wrongdoing : to charge with a fault and especially with a crime

accuser noun

accusingly

-ˈkyü-ziŋ-lē 

adverb

Legal Definition

accuse

verb

ac·​cuse

accused; accusing

transitive verb

: to charge with an offense judicially or by a public process compare indict

intransitive verb

: to make or bring an accusation

accuser noun

Etymology

Verb

Latin accusare to find fault with, charge with a crime, from ad to, at + causa legal case, trial