What does accusable mean?
Accusable is a formal English adjective meaning capable of being accused — that is, liable to be formally charged with wrongdoing or held deserving of blame. It combines the verb 'accuse' with the suffix '-able', so it describes a potential rather than an accomplished state: a person who is accusable is one against whom a credible charge could be brought, whether or not any accusation has actually been made. The word appears chiefly in legal, moral, and philosophical contexts, where writers need to distinguish between conduct that merely invites suspicion and conduct that genuinely warrants censure. Because it is uncommon in everyday speech, it lends writing a precise, slightly elevated register. Its antonyms include blameless and irreproachable. For readers seeking exactness in discussions of guilt, responsibility, and due process, accusable offers a useful nuance that plainer words like 'guilty' cannot supply.
adjectiveCapable of being accused; liable to blame or charge with wrongdoing.
- Capable of being accused; liable to be charged with fault or wrongdoing.
"The auditor's report made clear that no one in the department was accusable of fraud."
"The committee concluded that the minister's conduct was accusable, though not criminal."
"In a well-run institution, no honest employee need fear being accusable for reporting a problem."
Rare enough that spellcheckers often flag it, 'accusable' has been quietly doing legal work since the days of Latin courtroom rhetoric.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of accusable
Accusable derives from the Latin verb accusare, meaning 'to call to account' or 'to bring charges against', formed from ad- ('toward') and causa ('cause, lawsuit'). The word entered English via Old French acuser combined with the Latinate suffix '-able', following the pattern of other adjectives of liability such as 'punishable' and 'actionable'. It shares its ultimate root with related English words including accuse, accusation, accusatory, and, more distantly, excuse and cause.
How accusable is actually used
Formal and relatively rare; found mostly in legal, philosophical, or literary writing. It carries a neutral-to-negative connotation, implying that blame would be justified rather than merely possible.
Easily confused with accusable
'Accused' describes someone who has actually been charged with an offense, while 'accusable' describes someone who could legitimately be charged or blamed.