First Known Use: 14th century
Dictionary
accuse
verb ac·cuse \ə-ˈkyüz\
: to blame (someone) for something wrong or illegal : to say that someone is guilty of a fault or crime
ac·cusedac·cus·ing
Full Definition of ACCUSE
transitive verb
1
: to charge with a fault or offense : blame
2
: to charge with an offense judicially or by a public process
intransitive verb
See accuse defined for English-language learners
See accuse defined for kids
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Origin of ACCUSE
Middle English, from Anglo-French accuser, from Latin accusare to call to account, from ad- + causa lawsuit
Related to ACCUSE
Other Legal Terms
Rhymes with ACCUSE
abuse, amuse, Andrews, bad news, bemuse, berceuse, chanteuse, charmeuse, chartreuse, coiffeuse, confuse, contuse, danseuse, defuse, diffuse, diseuse, disuse, effuse, enthuse, excuse, ill-use, incuse, infuse, masseuse, misuse, perfuse, peruse, recluse, recuse, refuse, reuse, short fuse, suffuse, Toulouse, transfuse, vendeuse
ACCUSE Defined for Kids
accuse
verb ac·cuse \ə-ˈkyüz\
ac·cusedac·cus·ing
Definition of ACCUSE for Kids
: to blame for something wrong or illegal <She accused him of stealing.>
— ac·cus·er noun
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