It literally means “through my (own) fault.” Mea culpa can be used as an interjection (much like my fault or my bad) or as a noun referring to an apology, as in The senator offered a mea culpa during the press conference. Example: Dave usually has a hard time admitting he's wrong, so his mea culpa means a lot.

How do you use culpa in a sentence?

Culpa sentence example

I expect the newspaper to be issuing a mea culpa any day now for the startling inconsistencies in its most recent article. The business president gathered all of his employees in order to issue a formal mea culpa regarding the company's mistakes.

What does culpa mean?

1 Roman & civil law : actionable negligence or fault specifically : the failure to use the care and diligence demanded by the special relationship between the plaintiff and defendant under the particular circumstances that arises from inattention, careless conduct, or want of care —distinguished from dolus.