1
: the fact of having committed a breach of conduct especially violating law and involving a penalty
A jury will determine the defendant's guilt or innocence.
broadly
: guilty conduct
2
a
: the state of one who has committed an offense especially consciously
His guilt was written in his face.
b
: feelings of deserving blame especially for imagined offenses or from a sense of inadequacy : self-reproach
3
: a feeling of deserving blame for offenses
Wracked by guilt, he confessed his affairs.
guilted; guilting; guilts
: to cause (someone) to feel guilty
Don't listen to Mommy. She's trying to guilt you.—Gary Shteyngart
: to persuade (someone) to do something by causing feelings of guilt
… guilting her to eat her own green beans because "there are starving children in Africa."—Katie Boerema
—often followed by intoA far stronger compulsion is created when people think they're being watched, as a mildly impressive 86 percent of people were guilted into washing their hands in one study.—Steve Lipsher
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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