WORD OF THE DAY: MEA CULPA

WORD OF THE DAY: MEA CULPA

noun|may-uh-KOOL-puh

What It Means

The noun mea culpa is used for a formal acknowledgment of personal fault or error.

// The podcast host’s mea culpa did little to satisfy those who found the episode deeply offensive.

Examples of MEA CULPA

“… his apology was the best public mea culpa of this century. … It was delivered without hesitation, qualification or blame shifting.” — John Mosig, The Age (Melbourne, Australia), 24 Oct. 2025

Did You Know?

Mea culpa means “through my fault” in Latin. Said by itself, it’s an exclamation of apology or remorse that is used to mean “It was my fault” or “I apologise.” Mea culpa is also a noun, however. A newspaper might issue a mea culpa for printing inaccurate information, or a politician might give a speech making mea culpas for past wrongdoings. Mea culpa is one of many English terms that come from the Latin culpa, meaning “guilt.” Some other examples are culpable (“meriting condemnation or blame especially as wrong or harmful”), culprit (“one guilty of a crime or a fault”), and exculpate (“to clear from alleged fault or guilt”).

Merriam Webster Dictionary