What does "guilt" mean?
Responsibility for wrongdoing.
Guilt
/ɡɪlt/ adj, noun, verb, slang
adj, noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Responsibility for wrongdoing.
- Grammar: guilt is listed as adj, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: culpability, guilt trip, guiltiness, blame.
- Useful contrasts: absolution, absolving, acceptance.
- Usage evidence: Everything points to his guilt.
How to use "guilt"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "guilt" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "guilt" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "guilt" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "guilt" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "guilt" is acting as adj, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "culpability" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "guilt", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 Responsibility for wrongdoing. uncountable, usually
- 2 remorse caused by feeling responsible for some offense wordnet
- 3 The state of having been found guilty or admitted guilt in legal proceedings. uncountable, usually
- 4 the state of having committed an offense wordnet
- 5 Regret for having done wrong. uncountable, usually
"Appropriate guilt is experienced when we actually do something objectively wrong—for example, exploit another, betray a trust, and so on. […] Inappropriate guilt occurs from believing a lie and is resolved by an application of the truth."
Verb
- 1 To commit offenses; act criminally. intransitive, obsolete
- 2 To cause someone to feel guilt, particularly in order to influence their behaviour. informal, transitive
"He didn't want to do it, but his wife guilted him into it."
Adjective
- 1 Obsolete form of gilt (“gilded”) alt-of, not-comparable, obsolete
"Two silver monteths, two large fflaggons, two large tankards, two silver salvers, a voyder and a knyfe, two silver salts, two guilt bolls of the like size, one other boll, three silver bolls, in all 24 pieces guilt and unguilt."
Synonyms
All synonymsExample
"Everything points to his guilt."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "guilt"?
Common synonyms include: culpability, guilt trip, guiltiness, blame, blame, blameworthiness.
How do you use "guilt" in a sentence?
Everything points to his guilt.
How do you pronounce "guilt"?
Pronounced /ɡɪlt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English gilt, gult, from Old English gylt (“guilt, sin, offense, crime, fault”), of obscure origin, but possibly related with Old English ġieldan (“to pay, requite, punish”), whence yield. More specifically it could be connected with Proto-West Germanic *guldijā, whence Middle Low German gülde, Middle High German gülte (“debt, fee, financial duty”). However, neither the Old English stem form nor the -t (instead of -d) fit the continental form.
Etymology 2
From Middle English gilten, gylten, from Old English gyltan (“to commit sin, be guilty”), from gylt (“guilt, sin, offense, crime, fault”).
Etymology 3
From Etymology 1.