culpable

adjective

cul·​pa·​ble ˈkəl-pə-bəl How to pronounce culpable (audio)
1
: meriting condemnation or blame especially as wrong or harmful
culpable negligence
The defendant is culpable for her actions.
2
archaic : guilty, criminal
culpableness noun
culpably adverb
Choose the Right Synonym for culpable

blameworthy, blamable, guilty, culpable mean deserving reproach or punishment.

blameworthy and blamable apply to any degree of reprehensibility.

conduct adjudged blameworthy
an accident for which no one is blamable

guilty implies responsibility for or consciousness of crime, sin, or, at the least, grave error or misdoing.

guilty of a breach of etiquette

culpable is weaker than guilty and is likely to connote malfeasance or errors of ignorance, omission, or negligence.

culpable neglect

Examples of culpable in a Sentence

They held her culpable for the accident. He's more culpable than the others because he's old enough to know better.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The Framers understood the danger of a despotic regime and regarded the criminal jury trial as a key procedural safeguard to help ensure that only those acts and individuals society deemed truly culpable result in criminal punishment. Mike Fox, Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2025 His legal team presented arguments that the more culpable perpetrator received a lesser sentence and that a recent autism diagnosis were mitigating factors worthy of a clemency recommendation. James Powel, USA Today, 8 May 2025 After the war, in 1945, around three million Germans, seen as culpable for the war and Nazi crimes, fled or were deported from the area. Sara Cincurova, New York Times, 3 May 2025 Prosecutors have launched an investigation into the crash regarding possible charges of manslaughter and culpable disaster. Nicholas Creel, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Apr. 2025 See All Example Sentences for culpable

Word History

Etymology

Middle English coupable, from Anglo-French cupable, culpable, from Latin culpabilis, from culpare to blame, from culpa guilt

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of culpable was in the 14th century

Cite this Entry

“Culpable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/culpable. Accessed 24 May. 2025.

Kids Definition

culpable

adjective
cul·​pa·​ble ˈkəl-pə-bəl How to pronounce culpable (audio)
: deserving blame
culpability noun
culpableness noun
culpably adverb

Legal Definition

culpable

adjective
cul·​pa·​ble ˈkəl-pə-bəl How to pronounce culpable (audio)
: deserving condemnation or blame as wrong or harmful
culpability noun
culpableness noun
culpably adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on culpable

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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