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mea culpa

 [me-ah kool-pah; Eng. mey-uh kuhl-puh, mee-uh]   Origin

me·a cul·pa

   [me-ah kool-pah; Eng. mey-uh kuhl-puh, mee-uh]
Latin.
through my fault; my fault (used as an acknowledgment of one's responsibility).
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
mea culpa (ˈmeɪɑː ˈkʊlpɑː)
 
—
an acknowledgment of guilt
 
[literally: my fault]

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

mea culpa
late 14c., from L., lit. "I am to blame," a phrase from the prayer of confession in the L. liturgy.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Cultural Dictionary
mea culpa [(may-uh kul-puh, kool-puh)]

An expresssion from Catholic ritual that assigns blame to oneself: “I gave you the wrong directions to my house — mea culpa.” From Latin, meaning “my fault” or “my blame.”

The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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