exculpate

[ek-skuhl-peyt, ik-skuhl-peyt]

See more synonyms for exculpate on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), ex·cul·pat·ed, ex·cul·pat·ing.

to clear from a charge of guilt or fault; free from blame; vindicate.

Origin of exculpate

1650–60; < Latin exculpātus freed from blame, equivalent to ex- ex-¹ + culpātus blamed (past participle of culpāre; see culpable)

Related formsex·cul·pa·ble

[ik-skuhl-puh-buh l] /ɪkˈskʌl pə bəl/, adjectiveex·cul·pa·tion, nounnon·ex·cul·pa·ble, adverbnon·ex·cul·pa·tion, nounself-ex·cul·pa·tion, nounun·ex·cul·pa·ble, adjectiveun·ex·cul·pat·ed, adjective

Can be confusedexculpate exonerate inculpate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for exculpation

excuse, exoneration, acquittal, vindication, acquittance

Examples from the Web for exculpation

Historical Examples of exculpation

He foresaw that any attempt at exculpation would be as fruitless as dangerous.
Gomez Arias
Joaqun Telesforo de Trueba y Coso
She fought on the consuming fire to have her exculpation heard.
Diana of the Crossways, Complete
George Meredith
But, because she was Clancy Deane, they were not words of exculpation, or of apology.
Find the Woman
Arthur Somers Roche
His exculpation was complete before every tribunal of opinion.
The Life of Jefferson Davis
Frank H. Alfriend
But that very circumstance is our exculpation, instead of our guilt.
Dangerous Connections, v. 1, 2, 3, 4
Pierre Choderlos de Laclos

British Dictionary definitions for exculpation

exculpate

verb

(tr) to free from blame or guilt; vindicate or exonerate

Derived Formsexculpable (ɪkˈskʌlpəbəl), adjectiveexculpation, nounexculpatory, adjective

Word Origin for exculpate

C17: from Medieval Latin exculpāre, from Latin ex- 1 + culpāre to blame, from culpa fault, blame

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for exculpation

1715, noun of action from exculpate.

exculpate

1650s, from Medieval Latin exculpatus, past participle of exculpare, from Latin ex culpa, from ex "from" (see ex-) + culpa ablative of culpa "blame, fault." Related: Exculpated; exculpating.