incriminate
Americanverb (used with object)
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to accuse of or present proof of a crime or fault.
He incriminated both men to the grand jury.
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to involve in an accusation; cause to be or appear to be guilty; implicate: He feared incriminating himself if he answered.
His testimony incriminated his friend.
He feared incriminating himself if he answered.
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to charge with responsibility for all or part of an undesirable situation, harmful effect, etc..
to incriminate cigarettes as a cause of lung cancer.
verb
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to imply or suggest the guilt or error of (someone)
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to charge with a crime or fault
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of incriminate
First recorded in 1720–30; from Late Latin incrīminātus, past participle of incrīmināre “to accuse”; see in- 2, criminate
Explanation
Is your homework in shreds and the dog chewing something? Then you can incriminate poor Fido for eating your homework. To incriminate someone (or some dog) of a crime, is more than just accusing them; it's offering some evidence they're guilty. To incriminate someone is to show or prove their guilt with "incriminating evidence." Some famous historical examples of incriminating evidence: When President Nixon declared "I am not a crook," those pesky Watergate tapes suggested otherwise. Or when Lady Macbeth couldn't stop washing her imaginary blood-stained hands? Hmmmm.... Pretty incriminating.
Vocabulary lists containing incriminate
Flush
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And Then There Were None
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Catching Fire
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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.
In a series of Substack posts, the first of which has garnered 751,000 views, Lizza took aim at Nuzzi’s journalistic integrity, airing alleged text-message exchanges, love poetry and recorded conversations meant to incriminate his ex.
From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 4, 2025
Byers initially did not want to testify at all, believing his life to be in danger and fearing that he might incriminate himself.
From Slate • Dec. 1, 2025
"So you need the criminal case to go first, because if you made statements in the civil cases in order to defend yourself, you could possibly incriminate yourself."
From BBC • Dec. 11, 2024
By contrast he wouldn't let them go hard after David Pecker, his buddy who also happens to have a box full of papers that Trump believes might incriminate him in god-only-knows-what.
From Salon • May 31, 2024
—He had the money with him and gave it to me, a solid sum in Royal Karhidish Merchants’ notes of credit, nothing to incriminate me, and consequently nothing to prevent me from simply spending it.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
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.
