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blame

v. · n.
US //ˈbɫeɪm// UK //blˈeɪm// blame
  1. 1 to attribute responsibility (v.)
    B1 Intermediate

    to say or think that someone or something is the cause of a bad result.

    to attribute responsibility for a fault or error to a specific person or cause. Transitive; typically takes a direct object followed by 'for'.

    Example

    Don't blame me for the mess; I wasn't even in the kitchen.

    Example

    Economists often blame the sudden market downturn on a combination of high interest rates and low consumer confidence.
    Pitfall
    He blamed his failure to the weather.
    He blamed his failure on the weather.

    You blame something 'on' someone, or blame someone 'for' something. Do not use 'to'.

  2. 2 responsibility for a fault (n.)
    B1 Intermediate

    the responsibility for a mistake or something bad that has happened.

    the state of being responsible for a negative outcome or a moral failure. Uncountable in most contexts.

    Example

    The driver accepted the blame for the accident because he was speeding.

    Example

    The CEO refused to take the blame for the company's losses, instead pointing to global supply chain disruptions.
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  1. 3 source control history (n.)
    C1 Advanced Technical Computing

    a tool in computer programming that shows which person wrote a specific line of code.

    a feature in version control systems that annotates each line of a file with the name of the last person to modify it.

    Example

    I used the blame tool to see who changed the login settings last week.

    Example

    Running a git blame on the configuration file revealed that the bug was introduced during the last security patch.

    Usage

    Often used as a command name in software like Git.
Etymology 1

From Middle English blame, borrowed from Old French blame, blasme, produced from the verb blasmer, which in turn is derived from Late Latin blastēmāre, variant of blasphēmāre, from Ancient Greek βλασφημέω (blasphēméō). Doublet of blaspheme. Displaced native Old English tǣling (“blame”) and tǣlan (“to blame”).

Etymology 2

From Middle English blamen, borrowed from Old French blasmer, from Late Latin blasphēmāre (“to reproach, to revile”), from Ancient Greek βλασφημέω (blasphēméō). Compare blaspheme, a doublet. Overtook common use from the native wite (“to blame, accuse, reproach, suspect”) (from Middle English wīten, from Old English wītan).

Word family
Idioms2 entries

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