der Schuldige
the person responsible
A person who is responsible for a mistake, a problem, or a misfortune.
EXAMPLE
Nach dem Streit war schnell klar, wer der Schuldige war.
After the argument, it quickly became clear who was responsible.
der Schuldige
culprit
die Schuldige, die Schuldigen
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Meanings
der Schuldige
culprit
A person who has committed a crime or another wrongdoing and is legally or morally responsible for it.
EXAMPLE
Das Gericht verurteilte den Schuldigen zu einer Geldstrafe.
The court sentenced the culprit to a fine.
Forms
Forms adapted from the German Wiktionary entry Schuldige, by Wiktionary contributors, licence CC BY-SA 4.0.
At a glance
| gender | feminine die |
|---|---|
| plural | die Schuldigen |
| genitive | der Schuldigen |
The four cases
| singular | plural | |
|---|---|---|
| nominative | die Schuldige | die Schuldigen |
| accusative | die Schuldige | die Schuldigen |
| dative | der Schuldigen | den Schuldigen |
| genitive | der Schuldigen | der Schuldigen |
The article changes with the case; it is shown in colour.
Usage tips
Word family
'Der Schuldige' (the person responsible) is derived from 'schuldig' (guilty) and is used as a noun for a person. This means the word can also appear in fixed expressions referring to people with an article or pronoun.
EXAMPLE
Die Polizei suchte lange nach dem Schuldigen.
The police searched for the culprit for a long time.
Context clue
When the context involves an argument, a mistake, or a problem, it usually refers to personal responsibility. Words such as 'Tat' (act/crime), 'Gericht' (court), 'Beweise' (evidence), or 'verurteilen' (to sentence/convict) point to the legal meaning.
EXAMPLE
Nach dem technischen Fehler wollte niemand der Schuldige sein.
After the technical error, no one wanted to be responsible.
Die neuen Beweise halfen dabei, den Schuldigen an dem Raubüberfall zu überführen.
The new evidence helped expose the culprit in the robbery.
Typical collocations
In the sense of personal responsibility, 'Schuldige' (person responsible) frequently occurs with verbs such as 'suchen' (to look for), 'finden' (to find), and 'benennen' (to name). The phrase 'jemanden zum Schuldigen machen' (to blame someone) is also common.
EXAMPLE
Statt das Problem zu lösen, machten sie den neuen Kollegen zum Schuldigen.
Instead of solving the problem, they blamed the new colleague.
In real life
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