Standard Lemma guide

culpable

adj · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • Canada, General-American, Received-Pronunciation: /ˈkʌlpəbəl/
  • California: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • Australian, New-Zealand: /ˈkɐlpəbəl/
  • CMU ARPABET: K AH1 L P AH0 B AH0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

adj

Meaning 1

Meriting condemnation, censure or blame, especially as something wrong, harmful or injurious; blameworthy, guilty.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Examples

  • I am culpable for stealing your money.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: at fault, to blame, blameworthy, censurable, culpable, guilty, nocent, reprehensible

Antonyms: none provided

2

adjective satellite

Meaning 2

deserving blame or censure as being wrong or evil or injurious

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

Examples

  • blameworthy if not criminal behavior
  • censurable misconduct
  • culpable negligence

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: blameworthy, blamable, blameable, blameful, censurable

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

From Middle English culpable, from Old French culpable, from Latin culpābilis (“blameworthy”), from culpō (“to blame, condemn”), from culpa (“a fault, crime, mistake”). Compare also culprit.

Across languages

Translations

22 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: виновен (vinoven) — blameworthy
  • Catalan: culpable — blameworthy
  • Dutch: verwijtbaar — blameworthy
  • Dutch: schuldig — blameworthy
  • Esperanto: kulpa — blameworthy
  • Finnish: syyllinen — blameworthy
  • Finnish: moitittava — blameworthy
  • French: coupable — blameworthy
  • German: verdammenswert — blameworthy
  • German: schuldig — blameworthy
  • German: strafbar — blameworthy
  • German: verdammungswürdig — blameworthy
  • Latin: culpandus — blameworthy
  • Persian: مقصر (moqasser) — blameworthy
  • Portuguese: culpável — blameworthy
  • Romanian: culpabil — blameworthy
  • Russian: вино́вный (vinóvnyj) — blameworthy
  • Russian: винова́тый (vinovátyj) — blameworthy
  • Spanish: culpable — blameworthy
  • Turkish: kabahatli — blameworthy
  • Turkish: kusurlu — blameworthy
  • Turkish: suçlu — blameworthy