NYT Dictionary

GUILT

/ɡɪlt/
NounVerbAdjectiveGILTGrade 6

Accepted in official NYT Spelling Bee puzzle years: 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024, 2025, 2026

Meaning

Responsibility for wrongdoing.

Etymology

Origin: Old English

Etymology tree Proto-West Germanic *gulti? Old English gylt Middle English gilt English guilt From Middle English gilt, gult, from Old English gylt (“guilt, sin, offense, crime, fault”), of obscure origin. Possibly related with Old English ġieldan (“to pay, requite, punish”) (whence yield), from Proto-West Germanic *guldijā (whence Middle High German gülte (“debt, fee, financial duty”), Middle Low German gülde, German Gülte), from Proto-West Germanic *geldan (“to pay for”), from Proto-Germanic *geldaną (“to pay”). However, neither the Old English stem form nor its ending -t (instead of -d) fit the continental form.

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

guiltinessremorseagenbiterueruthcompunctioncontritionguiltpenitencerepentance

Antonyms

innocenceblamelessnesscleannessinculpabilityinnocencyguiltlessnessunguilt

NYT Puzzle Appearances

Accepted in 4 recorded puzzles:

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