culpable
/kulˈpable/
The English word "guilty" is translated into Spanish as culpable.
culpable is an adjective used to describe someone who is judged to have committed a crime. When you want to specify the crime or action someone is guilty of, use the preposition de after the adjective (e.g., culpable de).
Meaning: judged to have committed a crime (adj)
Which one should you use?
While culpable is the adjective used to describe a person's state of being guilty or responsible, it is distinct from culpa, which is the noun meaning "guilt" or "fault".
Is it said differently in some regions?
In Mexico, the word culpado can be used to express the concept of being guilty.
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective culpable is invariant in gender, so it remains the same whether the subject is masculine or feminine. To make the word plural, use culpables.
How do you pronounce it?
/kulˈpable/
Did you know?
- In many Spanish-speaking cultures, saying no es mi culpa is often accompanied by a palms-up gesture to visually emphasize a lack of responsibility.
- The word culpable is a cognate of the English word 'culpable', but in Spanish it is the standard everyday word for 'guilty', whereas in English 'culpable' is mostly used in formal or legal writing.
- While culpable refers to the state of being guilty, the Spanish word culpa is frequently used in the common phrase mi culpa, which is the direct equivalent of the Latin 'mea culpa'.
Examples in context
- Yo me sentí culpable.I felt guilty.This sentence is useful for expressing a personal feeling of being culpable.Tatoeba #4592737 by Francisco_M, translation #2304842 by Hybrid
- No me siento culpable.I do not feel guilty.This sentence is useful for expressing a lack of feeling of being culpable.Tatoeba #1642706 by marcelostockle, translation #1726879 by belgavox
- Él es culpable de robo.He is guilty of stealing.This sentence is useful for stating that someone is culpable of a specific crime.Tatoeba #455660 by Shishir, translation #301941 by adjusting
- El acusado fue declarado culpable del delito.The defendant was declared guilty of the crime.
- Los miembros del comité son responsables de la mala gestión.The committee members are guilty of mismanagement.
- El juez consideró al inculpado como culpable.The judge considered the accused as guilty.
- No deberías tratarlo como chivo expiatorio. Todos somos culpables de este error.You shouldn't treat him as a scapegoat. We are all guilty of this mistake.
- 102 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Alejandro and Sofía are discussing a news report about a trial.
- Alejandro¿Sabes si el hombre es culpable?Do you know if the man is guilty?
- SofíaSí, lo declararon culpable ayer.Yes, they declared him guilty yesterday.
- AlejandroEs una noticia muy triste.It is very sad news.
- SofíaLo siento por su familia.I feel sorry for his family.
Sources
- Wiktionary, “guilty” translations and entries culpable, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
