culpable
Americanadjective
adjective
Usage
What does culpable mean? Culpable means deserving blame for a crime or wrongdoing. When someone is described as culpable for something, it means it’s their fault or that they are guilty of it. Culpable is typically used in serious legal contexts involving crimes. The noun culpability refers to the guilt or blame that is deserved for some crime or wrongdoing. Example: The CEO should be held criminally culpable for the negligence that resulted in the deaths of several employees.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of culpable
1275–1325; Middle English < Latin culpābilis, equivalent to culpā ( re ) to hold liable (derivative of culpa blame) + -bilis -ble; replacing Middle English coupable < Middle French < Latin as above
Explanation
If a child tells his mother he was not to blame for the cookie jar being broken, she could still find him culpable if he was the only one home. Culpable means to be at fault. Culpable is being deserving of blame. If you are culpable of a crime, you are the culprit, or the one who did it. Culpable can be used when looking for the root of the problem rather than a simple who done it. If a teacher leaves the room during a difficult test, and the students decide to cheat, parents might ask whether or not the teacher was also somewhat culpable for the outcome.
Vocabulary lists containing culpable
100 SAT words Beginning with "C"
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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.
Liberian Vice-President Jeremiah Koung praised the security forces for the operation and said whosoever was found culpable would "feel the full weight of the law, regardless of who you are".
From BBC ● Jul. 22, 2026
While an England implosion was familiar, perhaps only Stokes was culpable for his dismissal.
From BBC ● Jun. 5, 2026
Prosser now works in holistic coaching and wellness and told AFP she understands other families are furious Law will not be held culpable for murder but said she does not share that emotion.
From Barron's ● May 29, 2026
Iskander, on the witness stand on Tuesday, echoed her attorney Brian Panish, who promised to show the pitcher and his then-girlfriend were both culpable because they were racing on the residential street.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2026
When you explained what you’d really come to tell me the day I professed my feelings for him, I felt culpable because you’re right: I did lead you on.
From "Odd One Out" by Nic Stone
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.
