01
die Schuld
blame / responsibility
Responsibility for a mistake, misfortune, or wrongful action; fault.
example
Die Polizei untersucht, wer die Schuld an dem Unfall hat.
The police are investigating who is to blame for the accident.
die Schuld
guilt / debt
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Meanings
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Usage tips
Word family
'Die Schuld' (guilt/blame/debt) is part of a word family. The related verb is 'schulden' (to owe money), and the adjective is 'schuldig' (guilty; responsible for something negative).
EXAMPLE
Er schuldet mir noch 50 Euro.
He still owes me 50 euros.
Singular vs. plural
Pay attention to the difference between singular and plural. 'Die Schuld' (singular) usually means responsibility, blame, or moral wrongdoing. 'Die Schulden' (plural) almost always refers to financial debts.
EXAMPLE
Er gab zu, die Schuld am Streit zu haben.
He admitted that he was to blame for the argument.
Fixed construction
The construction 'schuld sein an etwas' (to be to blame for something) is very common. It describes the cause of a problem. The object that represents the problem is always in the dative.
EXAMPLE
Das schlechte Wetter war schuld an der Verspätung.
The bad weather was to blame for the delay.
Typical collocations (responsibility)
When it is about responsibility, typical phrases are 'jemandem die Schuld geben' (to blame someone), 'die Schuld auf sich nehmen' (to take the blame), or 'Schuld haben an etwas' (to be responsible for/to be to blame for something).
EXAMPLE
Es ist nicht fair, ihm allein die Schuld zu geben.
It is not fair to blame him alone.
Typical collocations (money)
In a financial context, 'Schulden' (debts) is often used with verbs like 'machen' (to incur), 'haben' (to have), 'zurückzahlen' (to pay back), or 'abbezahlen' (to pay off).
EXAMPLE
Viele junge Leute machen Schulden, um studieren zu können.
Many young people incur debts in order to study.
Compare with
Schuld vs Grund
reason / ground
'der Grund' and 'die Schuld' can both explain why something happened. The important difference is: 'der Grund' is neutral. It can be positive, negative, or simply factual. 'die Schuld' is used when someone is responsible for a mistake or a problem. Learners may confuse the words because with negative events, people often ask for the reason and at the same time look for someone to blame. In practice: if you only want to explain why something happened, use 'Grund'. If you mean responsibility for something negative, 'Schuld' fits better.
Schuld
Nach dem Unfall wollte niemand die Schuld übernehmen.
After the accident, nobody wanted to take the blame.
Grund
Wegen des Wetters hatte mein Bruder einen guten Grund, den Ausflug abzusagen.
Because of the weather, my brother had a good reason to cancel the outing.
In real life
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