Definition of blameworthynext

Synonym Chooser

How is the word blameworthy different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of blameworthy are blamable, culpable, and guilty. While all these words mean "deserving reproach or punishment," blameworthy and blamable apply to any degree of reprehensibility.

conduct adjudged blameworthy
an accident for which no one is blamable

When might culpable be a better fit than blameworthy?

Although the words culpable and blameworthy have much in common, culpable is weaker than guilty and is likely to connote malfeasance or errors of ignorance, omission, or negligence.

culpable neglect

When is guilty a more appropriate choice than blameworthy?

The words guilty and blameworthy are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, guilty implies responsibility for or consciousness of crime, sin, or, at the least, grave error or misdoing.

guilty of a breach of etiquette

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of blameworthy Extreme cold made the O-rings fail, but NASA’s culture was just as blameworthy and needed a retrofit more urgently than any piece of shuttle hardware. Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 28 Jan. 2026 As the shutdown goes on, moreover, the polling on which side is more to blame seems to be gradually shifting toward Democrats as the more blameworthy side. Josh Hammer, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Oct. 2025 His Stoic Challenge framework invites you to see a setback not as something terrible, blameworthy or unfair but instead as a test of your ingenuity and resilience. Hanna Hart, Forbes.com, 29 May 2025 But Miss Manners acknowledges that there is also the less blameworthy impulse to offer comfort — not just sympathy — when there is no real comfort to be offered. Judith Martin, The Mercury News, 11 Feb. 2025 To highlight the hazy line between blameworthy and praiseworthy failure, Edmondson routinely asks leaders to estimate the percentage of blameworthy mistakes in their organizations. Ann Kowal Smith, Forbes, 27 Nov. 2023 On the whole, Google's spam filter, though in this instance imperfect, is not morally blameworthy. Jon Brodkin, Ars Technica, 25 Aug. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for blameworthy
Adjective
  • The records pulled back a curtain on favor-trading and frank communications in a chummy elite that looked past Epstein's 2008 guilty plea to solicitating prostitution from an underage girl in Florida.
    ABC News, ABC News, 3 Apr. 2026
  • Prisoners who are guilty of various violent crimes were not eligible, according to the embassy.
    Joe Walsh, CBS News, 3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
  • At the same time, owners, managers, and boards should provide timely notice to insurers or potentially culpable parties and preserve evidence before major demolition or permanent repairs.
    Keegan A. Berry, The Orlando Sentinel, 3 Apr. 2026
  • Damian Williams said Shah was the most culpable of the many defendants accused of participating in a nationwide fraud scheme.
    Assistant Editor, Los Angeles Times, 1 Apr. 2026
Adjective
  • Calling all Democrats evil is incredibly dangerous, not to mention morally reprehensible.
    Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 1 Apr. 2026
  • Releasing an old video, which conveniently omits context, on their son’s birthday is a reprehensible attempt to distract from his own behavior.
    Jack Dunn, Variety, 24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
  • The bill would make the unlawful approach of a first responder a misdemeanor offense punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and up to six months in jail.
    Matthew Kelly April 1, Kansas City Star, 1 Apr. 2026
  • Justice minister Stefanie Hubig has now announced plans to incorporate into German law an EU directive on banning non-consensual deepfake pornography, and to make both the production and distribution of it a specific criminal offence, punishable by up to two years in prison.
    The Week UK, TheWeek, 1 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Blameworthy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blameworthy. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.

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