Word.ws English Dictionary

vestra culpa

vestra culpa phrase: your fault, due to your error; you are to blame.

Phrase

vestra culpa

  1. (uncommon) Your fault, due to your error; you are to blame.
    • The exponents of guilt routinely exempt themselves from their accusations; they do not speak of mea culpa but of nostra culpa, or rather vestra culpa.1984, P[eter] T[homas] Bauer, “Ecclesiastical Economics: Envy Legitimized”, in Reality and Rhetoric: Studies in the Economics of Development, Cambridge, Mass.; London: Harvard University Press...
    • No doubt it is the natural prejudice of an Englishman (unless he belongs to the modern school of historians who like to beat their forefathers’ breasts with the cry Vestra culpa!) to believe in the benefit to our colonies of British institutions.1992, Philip Glazebrook, “Bokhara”, in Journey to Khiva: A Writer’s Search for Central Asia, New York, N.Y.; Tokyo; London: Kodansha International, published 1994, →ISBN, section I, page 137

Noun

vestra culpa (plural vestra culpas)

  1. (uncommon) An instance of blaming others.
    • Ours is one of the “leftist and liberal Catholic publications (who) beat their breasts with an editorial nostra culpa whenever Red gains ate chalked up anywhere in the world.” She [Gretta Palmer] inserted a parenthetical remark in the above sentence: “(or, staring fiercely at the Hierarchy, an even...1951 April, Ed Willock, “Reform and Conversion”, in Edward Willock, Carol Jackson, editors, Integrity, volume 5, number 7, New York, N.Y.: Integrity Publishing Company, →OCLC, page 31
    • Many progressive Catholics believe that by stressing the black side of the history of the Church — that is, the failure of many to live up to the call of Christ — they are being very objective and humble: after all, they are accusing their own Church. But in fact, this attitude is not at all the...1967 March 8, Dietrich von Hildebrand, “Tradition”, in Trojan Horse in the City of God, Chicago, Ill.: Franciscan Herald Press, →LCCN, →OCLC, part IV (Sacred and Secular), page 211

Examples of vestra culpa in a sentence

  • Your reasoning, p’raps, was theological, / When apostolicum near ground to halt. / But I believe it quite illogical, / Nay – vestra culpa! – ’twas a grievous fault.2005 April, Jill Mitchell with ‘Cardinall’ [Andrew] Carwood, “Trust Me, I’m the Conductor”, in Early Music Review, Huntingdon...
  • Vestra culpa / IRRLÆUFER – Inspired by the great artists of the time and by the human desire for cruelty, works are created that address current themes in the guise of ancient lines.2025, IRRLÆUFER, archived from the original on 14 Nov 2025:
  • But in fact, this attitude is not at all the humble mea culpa of the Confiteor, but an arrogant vestra culpa; for these Catholics have given up their solidarity with the Church of yesterday.1967 March 8, Dietrich von Hildebrand, “Tradition”, in Trojan Horse in the City of God, Chicago, Ill.: Franciscan Herald Press, →LCCN...
  • Not so much as a mea culpa as a vestra culpa, really.2025 January 3, Marc Kerslake, “[Letters to the Editor] Safeguarding scandals and episcopal resignations”, in Church Times, London: GJ...

Forms of vestra culpa

Phrase
alternative formvostra culpa
Noun
pluralvestra culpas

Origin of vestra culpa

Learned borrowing from the Latin phrase vestrā culpā (“through your (plural) fault”), ablative case of vestra culpa (“your fault, guilt”), used in English by analogy with mea culpa and nostra culpa.

Questions about vestra culpa

What does vestra culpa mean?
Vestra culpa means your fault, due to your error; you are to blame.
How do you use vestra culpa in a sentence?
Your reasoning, p’raps, was theological, / When apostolicum near ground to halt. / But I believe it quite illogical, / Nay – vestra culpa! – ’twas a grievous fault.
What part of speech is vestra culpa?
Vestra culpa can be a phrase or a noun.

Words near vestra culpa in the dictionary

  1. vestocks
  2. vestoid
  3. vestoids
  4. Vestorian blue
  5. vestpocket
  6. vestra culpa
  7. vestra culpas
  8. vestral
  9. vestries
  10. vestry
  11. vestry clerk

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: vestra culpa (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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