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guilty Definition

guilty (gil′tē)

adjective guilt′i·er, guilt′i·est

  1. having guilt; deserving blame or punishment; culpable
  2. having one's guilt proved; legally judged an offender
  3. showing or conscious of guilt a guilty look
  4. of or involving guilt or a sense of guilt a guilty conscience

Etymology: ME gilti < OE gyltig

guilty Related Forms

guilt′i·ly adverb guilt′i·ness noun

guilty Synonyms

guilty

modif.

  1. Convicted

    found guilty, guilty as charged, condemned, sentenced, criminal, censured, impeached, incriminated, indicted, liable, condemned, proscribed, having violated law, weighed and found wanting, judged, damned, doomed, cast into outer darkness.

    Antonyms cleared, vindicated, absolved.

  2. Culpable

    at fault, sinful, on one's head, to blame, in the wrong, in error, accusable, censurable, wrong, blameworthy, blamable, reproachable, derelict, chargeable, indictable, convictable, looking like the cat that swallowed the canary*, caught red-handed*, caught with one's pants down*, caught with one's hand in the cookie jar*.

    Antonyms blameless, innocent*, right. *

  3. Wicked

    evil, depraved, licentious; see wicked 1.

guilty Law Definition

n

The state of being deemed responsible for the commission of a crime, either as a result of a plea or the adjudication of a judge or jury.

guilty Usage Examples

Preposition: on

count: He was found guilty on four counts of illegally providing immigration advice.

Preposition: as

hell: This was done, even tho it really cut me up, I felt guilty as hell.

Modifies a noun

  • plea: Fines are reduced in cases where guilty pleas are entered.
  • verdict: A jury at Bristol Crown Court took 11 hours to return guilty verdicts on nine counts of indecent assault on seven women.
  • conscience: Does a guilty conscience stop you enjoying your food?
  • sinner: How, then, can fallen, guilty, depraved sinners meet the law's demands?
  • pleasure: The final disk in the set is a guilty pleasure.
  • secret: Because haven't we all got a guilty secret?

Used with adjective complement

  • plead: August 11 th 1863 William Lilley, laborer of Clare pleaded guilty to stealing a tin bottle from William Gosling of Clare.
  • feel: Now I feel guilty for having bought the car.
  • find: Anyone found guilty is liable to a fine of up to £ 5,000.
  • prove: He had to be accused by others and proven guilty by others.
  • deem: Students are deemed guilty of plagiarism when they claim to be the author of somebody else's work.

Preposition: of

  • offense: No-one shall be held guilty of any criminal offense for an action which was not a criminal offense at the time it was committed.
  • misconduct: Unless you are guilty of gross misconduct you should receive notice of dismissal or pay in lieu of notice.
  • manslaughter: The following year he was found guilty of voluntary manslaughter.
  • treason: Inciting anyone to take up arms against British soldiers is, in my book, guilty of treason.
  • murder: Was Bert Hall guilty or not guilty of the murder of Mary Hackett?
  • maladministration: The fact that a regulator has acted rationally does not mean that it has not acted unreasonably or been guilty of maladministration.

Preposition: by

jury: Crouch, from Green End, Renhold, was found guilty by a jury at Luton Crown Court in October.