blamed; blaming
1
: to find fault with : censure
the right to praise or blame a literary work
2
a
: to hold responsible
they blame me for everything
b
: to place responsibility for
blames it on me
blamer
noun
Is it blame on or blame for?: Usage Guide
Use of blame in sense 2b with on has occasionally been disparaged as wrong. Such disparagement is without basis; blame on occurs as frequently in carefully edited prose as blame for. Both are standard.
1
: an expression of disapproval or reproach : censure
… saying nothing … either in the way of blame or praise.—
R. L. Stevenson
R. L. Stevenson2
a
: a state of being blameworthy : culpability
… acknowledge the world as a world of common blame,—Muriel Rukeyser
Muriel Rukeyser3
: responsibility for something believed to deserve censure
they must share the blame
Examples of blame in a Sentence
Verb
Don't blame me. You are responsible for your own problems.
My father always blames everything on me.
I blame the poor harvest on the weather.
Noun
It's not entirely his fault, but he's not completely free of blame, either.
willingly accepted the blame for not seeing that the kitchen was properly cleaned
Recent Examples on the Web
Judy Berman, Time, 23 Oct. 2025
Right-wing figures have blamed the Left for increasing the political temperature and resulting in Kirk’s assassination by weaponizing accusations of fascism, Nazism, and various kinds of bigotry.
—Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 23 Oct. 2025
Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2025
On both sides of the ball, the Jets haven't been able to get enough done, but more of the blame falls on the offense.
—Jon Conahan, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for blame
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Verb
And Bina remains as stridently anti-Joanne as ever, banning her from the Roklovs’ weekly Shabbat dinner and blaming her when Noah is passed over for the promotion.
—Judy Berman, Time, 23 Oct. 2025
Right-wing figures have blamed the Left for increasing the political temperature and resulting in Kirk’s assassination by weaponizing accusations of fascism, Nazism, and various kinds of bigotry.
—Emily Hallas, The Washington Examiner, 23 Oct. 2025
Noun
Stolarz shouldn’t shoulder all the blame for allowing four goals through two periods.
—Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2025
On both sides of the ball, the Jets haven't been able to get enough done, but more of the blame falls on the offense.
—Jon Conahan, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for blame
Cite this Entry
“Blame.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blame. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
blame
2 of 2 noun1
: expression of disapproval
receive both blame and praise
2
: responsibility for something that fails : fault
take the blame for the defeat
Etymology
Verb
Middle English blamen "to find fault with," from early French blamer, blasmer (same meaning), from Latin blasphemare "to speak ill of," from Greek blasphemein "to blaspheme" — related to blaspheme
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