culpa

[kuhl-puh, kool-pah]

noun

plural

culpae 

1. Roman and Civil Law.,  negligence; neglect (dolus ).

   One is not always liable before law for culpa resulting in damages.

2. guilt; sin.

culpa

/ ˈkʊlpɑː /

noun

1. civil law an act of neglect

2. a fault; sin; guilt

Word History and Origins

Origin of culpa¹

1250–1300; Old English < Latin: fault, liability, blame

Word History and Origins

Origin of culpa¹

Latin: fault

Example Sentences

“Sometimes you say ‘Mea culpa, we were wrong.

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A senior Tory told me after the election defeat the party had to "go everywhere and do a mea culpa, to listen and take a kicking".

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In the aftermath of the 1-1 draw against St Mirren, there was no mea culpa about anything, just words about how the players are not responding.

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When James Comey assumed the role of FBI director in 2013, he made a bit of a mea culpa.

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It’s said that every confession is a species of boasting, and Brooks’s mea culpa, that he “should have seen this coming,” is in that vein: He was just too good-hearted to think his fellow travelers in the conservative movement capable of such iniquity.

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