culpable

/ˈkʌlpəbl/ (bre, ipa) · /ˈkʌlpəbl/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈkəl-pə-bəl/ (ame, mw)

culpable — adjective

  • culpablepositive
  • more culpablecomparative
  • most culpablesuperlative

1. A person or organization that is culpable for a bad event is at fault for causin

1.形容詞B2
釋義

A person or organization that is culpable for a bad event is at fault for causing it and deserves to be criticised, blamed, or punished.

例句

Hiroshi was found culpable for the accounting errors that cost the company thousands.

passive: found culpable for + noun phrase

The court ruled that the factory was culpable for the chemical leak into the river.

collocation: culpable for [something harmful]

同義詞
  • blameworthy

    More formal and less common; used mainly in moral or ethical discussion rather than everyday contexts.

  • responsible

    Broader and more neutral; 'responsible' does not necessarily carry the sense of deserving blame (e.g. 'I am responsible for locking up' — no wrongdoing).

  • at fault

    More informal and everyday; common in conversational and business settings.

反義詞
  • innocent

    Direct opposite — not blameworthy at all, often used in legal or moral contexts.

  • blameless

    Having no part in the wrongdoing; free from responsibility for a negative outcome.

文法句型

be + culpable + for + noun phrase

用法筆記

Common in formal, journalistic, and legal contexts. Frequently appears in passive constructions such as 'was found culpable' or 'was held culpable'. The preposition that follows is almost always 'for'; 'culpable of' appears only in specialised legal phrasing (e.g. 'culpable of negligence') and is less common.

常見錯誤

❌I felt culpable of forgetting her birthday.
✅I felt culpable for forgetting her birthday.
💡The adjective takes 'for', not 'of', to introduce the reason for blame.
❌The court found the company guilty for the accident.
✅The court found the company culpable for the accident.
💡'Guilty' is for criminal verdicts; 'culpable' is for blameworthiness in a broader sense.