Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'accuse' carries a significant weight in our daily conversations and written communications. To accuse someone is to claim that they have done something wrong, often with the intention of holding them accountable for their actions. This word has been used in various cultural and historical contexts, from legal proceedings to social confrontations. Its impact is such that understanding its translation in different languages can be incredibly useful for global communication and cultural competency.
For instance, in Spanish, 'accuse' is 'acusar', while in French, it is 'accuser'. In German, the translation is 'beschuldigen', and in Japanese, it is ' uwaki o shiru' (違法を知る). These translations not only help us navigate linguistic barriers but also provide insights into how different cultures approach the concept of blame and accountability.
Below, you will find a comprehensive list of 'accuse' translations in various languages, from Arabic to Zulu. Whether you're a language learner, a world traveler, or a cultural enthusiast, this list is sure to expand your vocabulary and cultural knowledge.
Afrikaans | beskuldig | ||
The Afrikaans word "beskuldig" originates from the Dutch word "beschuldigen", meaning "to accuse" in English. | |||
Amharic | ክስ | ||
In certain contexts, the Amharic word "ክስ" can also mean "fault" or "mistake". | |||
Hausa | zargi | ||
The word "zargi" in Hausa can also mean "blame" or "hold responsible". | |||
Igbo | bo ebubo | ||
Igbo word "bo ebubo" can also mean "to confess" and "to take responsibility." | |||
Malagasy | miampanga | ||
The term can also be used as a noun meaning a "false accusation". | |||
Nyanja (Chichewa) | kuimba mlandu | ||
The word "kuimba mlandu" can also mean "to blame" or "to hold responsible". | |||
Shona | kupomera | ||
The word "kupomera" in Shona can also mean "to point at" or "to indicate". | |||
Somali | eedayn | ||
The word "eedayn" in Somali shares a root with the word for "wound"} | |||
Sesotho | qosa | ||
Qosa can also refer to reporting someone to a respected, but not necessarily an authoritative figure. | |||
Swahili | shtaki | ||
The word "shtaki" also means "to complain" or "to tell on someone" in Swahili. | |||
Xhosa | tyhola | ||
"Tyhola" also means to testify, or to give evidence, in both legal and non-legal contexts. | |||
Yoruba | ẹsun | ||
The word "ẹsun" in Yoruba can also mean "curse" or "malediction". | |||
Zulu | beka icala | ||
The Zulu word "beka icala" can be literally translated as "to cut a case or word", referring to the act of bringing someone into a dispute or court. | |||
Bambara | jalaki | ||
Ewe | nutsotso | ||
Kinyarwanda | gushinja | ||
Lingala | kofunda | ||
Luganda | okulumiriza | ||
Sepedi | latofatša | ||
Twi (Akan) | bɔ sobo | ||
Arabic | اتهم | ||
اتهم, in Arabic, has two roots: وهم meaning suspicion, and ثم meaning fix or establish, indicating the duality of accusation both as an established belief and an unfounded suspicion. | |||
Hebrew | לְהַאֲשִׁים | ||
The Hebrew verb "לְהַאֲשִׁים" ("accuse") also means to "ask". In fact, this is its original meaning. | |||
Pashto | تور لګول | ||
The Pashto word "تور لګول" can also mean "to blame" or "to hold responsible". | |||
Arabic | اتهم | ||
اتهم, in Arabic, has two roots: وهم meaning suspicion, and ثم meaning fix or establish, indicating the duality of accusation both as an established belief and an unfounded suspicion. |
Albanian | akuzim | ||
The word "akuzim" in Albanian is derived from the Latin word "accusare", meaning "to accuse" or "to charge". | |||
Basque | salatu | ||
Basque: ""salatu"" derives from Spanish: ""acusar"" or possibly Latin: ""salutare"". | |||
Catalan | acusar | ||
The Catalan verb "acusar" also means "to acknowledge" or "to notice". | |||
Croatian | optužiti | ||
The verb 'optužiti' is derived from the noun 'optužba', meaning 'accusation', which in turn comes from the Latin word 'accusatio'. The word 'optužba' can also refer to the act of accusing, or to the formal charges brought against a person in court. | |||
Danish | beskylde | ||
"Beskylde" is derived from "skyld," meaning guilt or fault, and the prefix "be," meaning to make or cause. | |||
Dutch | beschuldigen | ||
The word "beschuldigen" in Dutch originates from the Old High German "bisculdigen" meaning "to blame". | |||
English | accuse | ||
, meaning both to blame and to bring forth a charge in court | |||
French | accuser | ||
In French, the word "accusateur" can also refer to the prosecution or someone who files a lawsuit. | |||
Frisian | beskuldigje | ||
The Frisian word "beskuldigje" is derived from the Old Frisian word "biskuldiga"," which means "to accuse", and is also related to the Dutch word "beschuldigen". | |||
Galician | acusar | ||
In Galician, "acusar" may also mean "declare", "inform", or "admit". | |||
German | beschuldigen | ||
The German word "beschuldigen" comes from the Middle High German "beschuldegen" which originally meant "to place blame upon" | |||
Icelandic | saka | ||
The word "saka" can also mean "to charge with a crime" or "to make a claim against someone or something." | |||
Irish | cúisigh | ||
"Cúisigh" in Irish can also mean "to blame" or "to impute". | |||
Italian | accusare | ||
The Latin word "accusare" originally meant to summon someone to court. | |||
Luxembourgish | beschëllegen | ||
Beschëllegen is also used to refer to the process of applying a metallic coating to a surface, such as in the case of gilding or galvanizing. | |||
Maltese | akkuża | ||
"Akkura" is also a word for "correct" but this is only used in some phrases and mostly when referring to time or place. | |||
Norwegian | beskylde | ||
Beskylde is derived from the Old Norse word "skylda," meaning "to owe or be liable for," and can also refer to a duty or responsibility. | |||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | acusar | ||
"Acusar" can also mean "to accuse oneself" or "to plead guilty" and comes from the Latin word "accusare", | |||
Scots Gaelic | casaid | ||
The word 'casaid' also means 'adorn' in Irish Gaelic and comes from the Proto-Celtic root *kas- ( | |||
Spanish | acusar | ||
"Acusar" originally meant "to reveal" or "to betray" in Latin, and it still retains that meaning in some contexts in Spanish. | |||
Swedish | anklaga | ||
The Swedish word "anklaga" also has the alternate meaning of "to slander" or "to spread false information about someone" | |||
Welsh | cyhuddo | ||
The word 'cyhuddo' also means 'to impute' or 'to ascribe' in Welsh. |
Belarusian | абвінавачваць | ||
It is also a cognate with the Russian word | |||
Bosnian | optuži | ||
The root of "optuži" (accuse) is Proto-Indo-European "*tep-", which also gives us "topic" and "type". | |||
Bulgarian | обвинявам | ||
"Obvinjavam" is a verb in Bulgarian which may mean "to charge" or to "accuse". | |||
Czech | obvinit | ||
The word "obvinit" also means "to enwrap" or "to cover with something". | |||
Estonian | süüdistada | ||
The verb "süüdistada" has the additional, now archaic meaning "to charge a fee" | |||
Finnish | syyttää | ||
"Syyttää" is also used in the sense of "to be liable", as in "Hän syyttyy rikoksesta." (He is liable for the crime.) | |||
Hungarian | vádol | ||
"Vádol" can also mean "shin" or "calf" in Hungarian. | |||
Latvian | apsūdzēt | ||
In Latvian, "apsūdzēt" can also mean "to charge someone with a crime" or "to denounce." | |||
Lithuanian | apkaltinti | ||
The word "apkaltinti" also means "to scold" in Lithuanian. | |||
Macedonian | обвинуваат | ||
The word "обвинуваат" is derived from the Slavic root "вин" (vin), meaning "guilt" or "fault", and can also mean "to charge" or "to blame". | |||
Polish | oskarżać | ||
The word "oskarżać" is derived from the Old Polish word "skarga," meaning "complaint" or "charge."} | |||
Romanian | acuza | ||
The word "acuza" in Romanian can also mean "blame" or "denounce." | |||
Russian | обвинять | ||
The related word 'вина' means both 'guilt' and 'wine', reflecting the close association between intoxication and criminal activity. | |||
Serbian | оптужују | ||
The word "оптужују" comes from the Proto-Slavic root *opъtati, which means "to test" or "to examine". | |||
Slovak | obviňovať | ||
The word "obviňovať" (accuse) in Slovak is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *obviniti, meaning "to twist, to bind". This suggests that the original meaning of the word was "to accuse someone of a crime by tying them up". This meaning is still preserved in some other Slavic languages, such as Polish and Russian. | |||
Slovenian | obtožiti | ||
The word "obtožiti" is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *obtožiti, meaning "to accuse, blame, or charge". | |||
Ukrainian | звинувачувати | ||
The word "звинувачувати" can also mean "blame" or "reproach". |
Bengali | অভিযুক্ত করা | ||
The term "অভিযুক্ত করা" is derived from the Sanskrit word "अभियुक्त" ("abhiyukt"), which means "joined together" or "associated with". | |||
Gujarati | દોષારોપણ | ||
Hindi | आरोप | ||
The word "आरोप" also means "charge" or "imputation" in Hindi. | |||
Kannada | ಆರೋಪ | ||
The Kannada word "ಆರೋಪ" is derived from the Sanskrit word "आरोप" (āropa), which means "to lay upon" or "to impute". It can also mean "a charge" or "an accusation" in both Kannada and Sanskrit. | |||
Malayalam | ബോധിപ്പിക്കുന്ന | ||
The Sanskrit root meaning of the word "ബോധിപ്പിക്കുന്ന" is "to know", suggesting that the primary sense of the word was "to make known". | |||
Marathi | आरोप | ||
आरोप also means 'a mountain' in Marathi. | |||
Nepali | आरोप लगाउनु | ||
The Nepali word "आरोप लगाउनु" can also mean "to charge" or "to impute". | |||
Punjabi | ਦੋਸ਼ | ||
The word "दोष" in Punjabi can also mean "fault" or "defect." | |||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) | චෝදනා කරන්න | ||
Tamil | குற்றம் | ||
குற்றம் also means 'crime' or 'fault', originating from the Sanskrit word 'kroota', meaning 'angry' or 'cruel'. | |||
Telugu | నిందించు | ||
The Telugu word "నిందించు" (accuse) is also used to refer to the act of blaming someone for something they have done wrong. | |||
Urdu | الزام لگانا | ||
The Urdu word "الزام لگانا" not only means "to accuse" but literally means "to impose obligation". |
Chinese (Simplified) | 告 | ||
"告" (accuse) also used to mean "inform" or "report to an official." | |||
Chinese (Traditional) | 告 | ||
The oracle bone script of '告' depicts a mouth with a hand holding a bamboo slip, representing 'to speak (to a god)'. | |||
Japanese | 告発 | ||
告発 derives from the Japanese phrase "罪を告げる" (tsumi o tsuge-ru), meaning "to report a crime or wrongdoing to the authorities." | |||
Korean | 비난하다 | ||
The word '비난하다' can also mean 'to blame' or 'to criticize'. | |||
Mongolian | яллах | ||
The word "яллах" in Mongolian can also mean "to blame" or "to hold responsible." | |||
Myanmar (Burmese) | စွပ်စွဲ | ||
Indonesian | menuduh | ||
The word "menuduh" can also mean "to point at" or "to show". | |||
Javanese | nuduh | ||
The word "nuduh" in Javanese can also mean "to point at" or "to identify someone". | |||
Khmer | ចោទប្រកាន់ | ||
Lao | ກ່າວຫາ | ||
"ກ່າວຫາ" is also a synonym of "กล่าวหา" (to accuse) in Thai. | |||
Malay | menuduh | ||
Menuduh can also refer to the act of alleging or blaming, not necessarily in a formal legal context. | |||
Thai | กล่าวโทษ | ||
กล่าวโทษ (accusation) comes from the Sanskrit word "ghash", meaning "to proclaim" or "to make known". This word is also related to the English word "gossip", which originally meant "to talk about someone behind their back". | |||
Vietnamese | buộc tội | ||
"Buộc tội" comes from the Chinese word " buộc ", meaning "to tie" or "to bind". | |||
Filipino (Tagalog) | akusahan | ||
Azerbaijani | ittiham etmək | ||
The word "ittiham etmək" comes from the Arabic word "ittihām", which means "accusation" or "charge". | |||
Kazakh | айыптау | ||
The Kazakh word "айыптау" also means "to blame" or "to reproach." | |||
Kyrgyz | айыптоо | ||
The word "айыптоо" also means "to reproach" or "to blame" in Kyrgyz. | |||
Tajik | айбдор кардан | ||
The word "айбдор кардан" is derived from the Persian word "aib", meaning "fault" or "defect", and the Tajik verb "кардан", meaning "to do" or "to make". | |||
Turkmen | günäkärlemek | ||
Uzbek | ayblash | ||
The word "ayblash" in Uzbek is derived from the Persian word "ayb", meaning "fault" or "defect". | |||
Uyghur | ئەيىبلەش | ||
Hawaiian | hoʻohewa | ||
The Hawaiian word "hoʻohewa" also means "to blame" or "to find fault with." | |||
Maori | whakapae | ||
In Maori, the term 'whakapae' originated from the word 'pae', which signifies 'a rock platform' or 'a place of public assembly'. | |||
Samoan | tuʻuaʻi | ||
The Samoan word "tu'ua'i" has roots in the Proto-Polynesian word for "tell" or "speak forth". | |||
Tagalog (Filipino) | akusahan | ||
The Tagalog word "akusahan" also means "charge" or "impeachment". |
Aymara | juchañchaña | ||
Guarani | oakusa | ||
Esperanto | akuzi | ||
Akuzi is derived from German "anklagen" (accuse) and is cognate with English "accuse". | |||
Latin | accusatis | ||
The word accusatis has an alternate form of the passive form, accusor. |
Greek | κατηγορώ | ||
"Κατηγορώ" shares the same root with "κατηγορία" which derives from "κατά" (against) and "αγορεύω" (address an assembly) | |||
Hmong | liam | ||
The Hmong word "liam" comes from the Proto-Hmong-Mien word *kli:m, which also means "blame" or "charge with wrongdoing". | |||
Kurdish | gilîkirin | ||
Gilîkirin is also known as kûdanîkirin in Kurmancî Kurdish and is derived from the Old Iranian root *dānā- ("to know, understand," from Proto-Indo-European *dʰeh₃-). | |||
Turkish | suçlamak | ||
Suçlamak' is derived from the Arabic word 'suç' meaning 'fault' or 'offense'. | |||
Xhosa | tyhola | ||
"Tyhola" also means to testify, or to give evidence, in both legal and non-legal contexts. | |||
Yiddish | באַשולדיקן | ||
The word "באַשולדיקן" can also mean "to inform", "to report", or "to make known" in Yiddish. | |||
Zulu | beka icala | ||
The Zulu word "beka icala" can be literally translated as "to cut a case or word", referring to the act of bringing someone into a dispute or court. | |||
Assamese | দায় ধৰ | ||
Aymara | juchañchaña | ||
Bhojpuri | आरोप लगावे के बा | ||
Dhivehi | ތުހުމަތު ކުރާށެވެ | ||
Dogri | इल्जाम लाना | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) | akusahan | ||
Guarani | oakusa | ||
Ilocano | akusaran | ||
Krio | akɔdin to pɔsin | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) | تۆمەتبارکردن | ||
Maithili | आरोप लगाउ | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯑꯦꯛꯁꯦꯁ ꯇꯧꯕꯥ꯫ | ||
Mizo | puh a ni | ||
Oromo | himachuu | ||
Odia (Oriya) | ଅଭିଯୋଗ | ||
Quechua | huchachay | ||
Sanskrit | आरोपयति | ||
Tatar | гаепләү | ||
Tigrinya | ክኸሱ | ||
Tsonga | ku hehla | ||