mea culpa

[ mey-uh kuhl-puh, mee-uh; Latin me-ah kool-pah ]

interjection

1. my fault! (used as an acknowledgment of one's responsibility).

noun

, plural me·a cul·pas.

1. an acknowledgment of one's responsibility for a fault or error.

mea culpa

/ ˈmeɪɑː ˈkʊlpɑː /

(no translation)

1. an acknowledgment of guilt

mea culpa

1. An expression from Catholic ritual that assigns blame to oneself: “I gave you the wrong directions to my house — mea culpa.” From Latin , meaning “my fault” or “my blame.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of mea culpa¹

From Latin: literally “through my fault”; mea culpa def 1 was first recorded in 1200–50, and mea culpa def 2 in 1815–20; culpa ( def )

Word History and Origins

Origin of mea culpa¹

literally: my fault

Example Sentences

The murderous mea culpa was shared in a trailer for the upcoming Peacock docuseries "Making Manson."

From Salon

In other words, she could suck the power out of Trump’s demagoguery with a truthful, disarming mea culpa, display a capacity for learning and follow with a forceful declaration of victory.

From Salon

Halevi’s mea culpa marked a change in tone from Israel’s military, which throughout the war has largely rejected criticism of its conduct by arguing that it was doing what was necessary to defeat Hamas.

From Seattle Times

General Halevi’s mea culpa marked a change in tone from Israel’s military, which throughout the war has largely rejected criticism of its conduct by arguing that it was doing what was necessary to defeat Hamas.

From New York Times

The panelists on ‘The View’ started their Monday with a public mea culpa for indulging in speculation about Kate Middleton before her cancer disclosure.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• my bad
• my fault