culprit
基本释义
[noun] a person who is responsible for a crime or other misdeed
[名词] 对某个罪行或其他不端行为负责的人
深入解读
Culprit 一词源自英国法语 cul prit ,其中后者缩略自 Culpable: prest (检察官在开庭时使用的词语,表示“有罪,准备证明我们的案子”)。
缩略后的 cul prit 进入英语后被误以为是对被告的称呼,因此 culprit 最早于17世纪70年代用作名词表示“因罪行或违法行为而被提讯的人”或者说“被控犯罪的人、刑事被告、未决犯”。
不过到了1769年后, culprit 开始发展为现在的主要含义指“罪犯、犯错的人”或者说“过失者、责任人”,常指因违法或做错事而对轻微罪行、过失等不端行为负责的人,比如:
- 现正在额外抽调警察去这个地区四处搜查,以寻找真正的罪犯。
Extra police are being drafted to scour the area for the real culprits.
从这个概念出发, culprit 常进一步用来引申指“肇事者、罪魁祸首”,即导致或引起问题、缺陷、不利情势等的起因或根源,比如:
- 当前这场危机的罪魁祸首好像是他的狂妄。
The main culprit in the current crisis seems to be his hubris.
好书例句
The breaking of a twig echoed loudly and the tiniest rustle of movement, even though it might have been made by an innocent sparrow, caused Harry to peer through the gloom for a culprit.
一根细树枝折断的声音回响着,还有什么东西移动时发生了轻微的沙沙声,尽管那也许是一只不会带来任何伤害的麻雀发出的,也会使哈利在黑暗中仔细张望,看看是不是有什么坏人。
出自英国作家J·K·罗琳的奇幻小说《哈利·波特》系列的第五本《哈利·波特与凤凰社》(Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix)。
外刊例句
- Yet locals see a common culprit: tourists.
但当地人却从中看到了一个共同的罪魁祸首:游客。
——《经济学人》 - One culprit for the disappointing report: aggregate cost per click, a crucial measure of Google’s advertising business, fell 9 percent from 2015.
业绩令人失望的一大元凶是:作为衡量谷歌广告业务的关键指标,总的每次点击费用比2015年下降9%。
——《纽约时报》
详细用法
Culprit 的详细用法和中文解释如下:
- Identify the culprit – 辨认罪犯
- The detective worked tirelessly to identify the culprit behind the crime.(侦探不辞辛劳地辨认出了犯罪背后的罪犯。)
- Catch the culprit – 抓住罪犯
- The police conducted an extensive investigation to catch the culprit responsible for the burglary.(警方进行了大规模的调查,抓住了负责入室盗窃的罪犯。)
- Blame the culprit – 责怪罪犯
- The company blamed the culprit for the security breach that led to the loss of sensitive data.(公司指责罪犯,他导致了敏感数据的丢失。)
- Uncover the culprit – 揭露罪犯
- The journalist’s investigation helped to uncover the culprit behind the political scandal.(记者的调查揭露了政治丑闻背后的罪犯。)
- The main culprit – 主要罪犯
- The main culprit in the accident was found to be the negligent driver.(事故的主要罪犯被发现是粗心的驾驶员。)
- Hold the culprit accountable – 追究罪犯责任
- The court held the culprit accountable for their actions and handed down a severe sentence.(法庭追究了罪犯的责任,并判处了严厉的刑罚。)
- The real culprit – 真正的罪犯
- After further investigation, the police discovered that the initial suspect was not the real culprit.(经过进一步调查,警方发现最初的嫌疑人并非真正的罪犯。)
- Escape the clutches of the culprit – 逃离罪犯的掌控
- The victim managed to escape the clutches of the culprit and seek help from the authorities.(受害者成功逃离了罪犯的掌控,并向当局求助。)
- Reveal the identity of the culprit – 揭示罪犯的身份
- Through careful investigation, the detective was able to reveal the identity of the culprit.(通过仔细调查,侦探成功揭示了罪犯的身份。)
- Bring the culprit to justice – 将罪犯绳之以法
- The legal system worked diligently to bring the culprit to justice and ensure a fair trial.(司法系统努力将罪犯绳之以法,确保公正审判。)
常见短语
常见用法:
- Find the culprit – 找到罪犯,找出真凶
- Identify the culprit – 辨认出罪犯
- Catch the culprit – 抓住罪犯
- Blame the culprit – 责怪罪犯
- Unmask the culprit – 揭露罪犯真面目
- Expose the culprit – 揭发罪犯
- Hold the culprit responsible – 追究罪犯责任
- Punish the culprit – 惩罚罪犯
- Escape like a culprit – 像罪犯一样逃跑
- The real culprit – 真凶,真正的罪犯
相关动词短语:
- Point out the culprit – 指出罪犯
- Track down the culprit – 追踪罪犯
- Pinpoint the culprit – 确定罪犯
- Uncover the culprit – 揭露罪犯
- Expose the true culprit – 揭发真正的罪犯
- Hold someone as the culprit – 认定某人为罪犯
- Accuse someone as the culprit – 指责某人为罪犯
- Label someone as the culprit – 把某人定为罪犯
- Identify the main culprit – 辨认出主要罪犯
- Track the steps of the culprit – 追踪罪犯的行踪
描述罪犯行为的短语:
- The prime culprit – 主要罪犯
- The suspected culprit – 疑似罪犯
- The notorious culprit – 臭名昭著的罪犯
- The elusive culprit – 难以捉摸的罪犯
- The mastermind behind the crime – 罪案背后的幕后黑手
- The accomplice of the culprit – 罪犯的同谋
- The serial culprit – 连环罪犯
其他相关短语:
- Search for the culprit – 搜寻罪犯
- Finger the culprit – 指认罪犯
- The culprit is at large – 罪犯仍在逍遥法外
同近义词
offender: a person or thing that does something wrong or causes problems
wrongdoer: a person who behaves illegally or dishonestly; an offender
malefactor: a person who commits a crime or some other wrong