culprit
- 01 B2 Upper Intermediate
the person who is responsible for a crime or for doing something wrong.
the individual responsible for a specific offence, misdeed, or crime.
Simple“The police are still looking for the culprit who stole the car.”
In context“After a lengthy investigation, the police finally identified the culprit responsible for the series of thefts in the downtown area.”
UsageOften used with the definite article 'the' when the specific person is known or being sought.
Synonyms - 02 B2 Upper Intermediate
the thing that is causing a problem or making something fail.
the primary cause of a problem, defect, or negative outcome.
Simple“It turns out a loose wire was the culprit for the power cut.”
In context“Medical researchers identified high sugar intake as the main culprit behind the recent rise in metabolic disorders.”
UsageCommonly used in technical or medical contexts to describe an inanimate cause of failure.
“The main culprit is Can f 1, a protein found mainly in dog saliva.”
From Anglo-Norman cul. prit, contraction of culpable: prest (d'averrer nostre bille) 'guilty: ready (to prove our case)', words used by prosecutor in opening a trial, mistaken in English for an address to the defendant. See culpable. It may have been influenced by Latin culpa (“blame, fault”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.