How to Say "to accuse" in Spanish
The Spanish word for “to accuse” is “culpar” — A2 level. This is a very common word in everyday Spanish.
Examples
No puedes culpar al clima por tu mala actitud.
You can't blame the weather for your bad attitude.
Todos culparon al conductor del accidente.
Everyone blamed the driver for the accident.
La policía no pudo culpar a nadie con las pruebas que tenía.
The police couldn't accuse anyone with the evidence they had.
Using the Personal 'a'
When you blame a person (the direct object), you must use the little word 'a' right before their name or description: 'Culpé a mi hermano' (I blamed my brother).
Structure: Blame for WHAT?
To specify the reason for the blame, use the preposition 'por': 'Me culparon por el error' (They blamed me for the mistake).
Confusing 'Culpar' and 'Echar la culpa'
Mistake: “Using 'culpar' as a noun phrase, like 'Él me echó la culpar.'”
Correction: The common way to assign blame is 'echar la culpa': 'Él me echó la culpa' (He put the blame on me). 'Culpar' is just the verb: 'Él me culpó'.
Related Translations
Learn Spanish with Inklingo
Interactive stories, personalized learning, and more.