Reculpate
/ˈriː.kəl.peɪt/noun
To take back an accusation or blame; to exculpate or clear from fault.
Did you know?Reculpate is a rare legal word built on the same Latin blame-root behind *culpable*, *exculpate*, and *inculpate*—proof that English has long treated guilt like something you can literally place or remove.
Etymological Timeline
Latin
Latin
culpa
“fault, blame, guilt”
Late Latin
Latin
reculpare
“to withdraw blame or accusation”
Middle French
French
reculper
“to retract an accusation; clear of blame”
16th–17th Century
English
reculpate
“to clear from blame; to exculpate”
Modern English
English
reculpate
“to clear someone of blame, especially in legal or formal writing”