英语词汇culprit的起源、历史背景-英语词源词典

词汇	culprit
词源	culprit n. 1670s, "person arraigned for a crime or offense," according to legal tradition from Anglo-French cul prit, a contraction of Culpable: prest (d'averrer nostre bille) "guilty, ready (to prove our case)," words used by prosecutor in opening a trial. See culpable. It seems the abbreviation cul. prit was mistaken in English for an address to the defendant. Meaning "a criminal, an offender" (1769) is, according to OED, "A change of sense, apparently due to popular etymology, the word being referred directly to L. culpa fault, offense." Entries linking to culprit culpable adj. "deserving censure, blameworthy," late 13c., coupable, from Old French coupable (12c., Modern French coupable), from Latin culpabilis "worthy of blame," from culpare "to blame," from culpa "crime, fault, blame, guilt, error." De Vaan writes that this might be from a PIE root *kuolp- "to bend, turn" (source also of Greek kolpos "bosom, lap;" see gulf (n.)). According to his sources, "The original meaning of culpa is 'a state of error' rather than 'an error committed'." English (and for a time French) restored the first Latin -l- in later Middle Ages. Related: Culpably; culpableness. updated on December 09, 2018
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culprit n.