the guilty party

Meanings

1. 1phrasefixed phrase

   The person or group responsible for a wrongdoing or fault.

   Grammar: Used with 'the'; can be singular or plural in meaning: the guilty party is / the guilty parties are.

   Patterns

   • the guilty party in something
   • identify the guilty party
   • find the guilty party

   After a long investigation, the police finally identified the guilty party.

   In a divorce, the court may try to determine the guilty party for financial reasons.

   The report did not name the guilty party but suggested several possibilities.

2. 2phrasefixed phraselegal

   In legal contexts, the defendant or the person accused of a crime.

   Grammar: Often used in formal or legal writing; can refer to a person or a company.

   Patterns

   • the guilty party in a case
   • prosecute the guilty party

   The judge ruled that the guilty party must pay damages to the victim.

   If the guilty party cannot be found, the case may be closed without a conviction.

Common combinations

identify the guilty party

The detective worked hard to identify the guilty party.

the guilty party in a dispute

Both sides blamed each other, but the guilty party in the dispute was never clear.

find the guilty party

It took months to find the guilty party in the corruption scandal.

name the guilty party

The newspaper refused to name the guilty party without more evidence.

Synonyms and how they differ

culprit

Often used for the person who did something wrong, but can be slightly informal and is common in news reports.

offender

More formal and legal; usually refers to someone who has committed a crime, not just a minor fault.

wrongdoer

Formal and slightly old-fashioned; focuses on the act of doing wrong rather than legal guilt.

Commonly confused: the guilty party or guilty verdict?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “the guilty party”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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