culpa
Americannoun
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Roman and Civil Law. negligence; neglect (distinguished from dolus).
One is not always liable before law for culpa resulting in damages.
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guilt; sin.
noun
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civil law an act of neglect
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a fault; sin; guilt
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of culpa
1250–1300; Old English < Latin: fault, liability, blame
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
After I published a mea culpa, I never believed anyone would care.
From Salon • Jun. 8, 2026
But at the very least, it deserves some kind of mea culpa from Becerra or lessons learned, a more robust conversation than the brush-off it’s been getting.
From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2026
Instead, in a sign of the times that seems impossibly quaint in the harsh light of 2026, she issued a somber mea culpa.
From Slate • May 6, 2026
"Normally, when presidents realise they are angering the public, they pull back and have some kind of mea culpa," Rowland said.
From BBC • Feb. 24, 2026
Not only did she have to deliver the biggest mea culpa in NASA's history, every second of it would be remembered forever.
From "The Martian" by Andy Weir
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
