be in the wrong
to be responsible for an accident, mistake – used when deciding which person, group should be blamed

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

guilty if someone is guilty of a crime or doing something wrong, they did it, and they should be punished for it:
She was found guilty of murder.
He was guilty of serious misconduct.
The two guilty men were ordered to pay damages to their victims.
responsible [not before noun] used when saying who should be blamed for something bad that has happened:
Police believe a local gang is responsible for the burglaries.
As manager, he is ultimately responsible for the failure of the project.
The other driver was responsible for the accident.
be to blame if someone is to blame for a bad situation, they are responsible:
The government is partly to blame for the crisis.
If anything goes wrong, it’s never him that is to blame.
culpable /ˈkʌlpəbəl/ formal responsible for something bad or illegal, so that you deserve to be blamed or punished:
The people who helped the terrorists are equally culpable for what happened on July 7th.
He pleaded guilty to culpable homicide (=being guilty of causing someone’s death).
negligent /ˈneɡlɪdʒənt/ [not usually before noun] responsible for something bad that has happened, because you did not take enough care, or you did not try to stop it from happening:
The court decided that the railway company was negligent.
be in the wrong to be responsible for an accident, mistake etc – used when deciding which person, group etc should be blamed:
The other driver was clearly in the wrong.
She always thinks it’s me who is in the wrong.
incriminating used about things which seem to show that someone is guilty of a crime:
incriminating evidence
incriminating documents
He didn’t want to say anything incriminating.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

in the wrong
responsible for something bad.
He was the first leader to state publicly that his country was in the wrong in the war.

Although she is portrayed as a victim, many of her friends think she may have been in the wrong.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

in the wrong
on the illegal or wrong side of an issue, guilty; wrong, against justice/truth/fact
The man was in the wrong and was easily found guilty by the court.

The driver was in the wrong and was arrested by the police after the accident.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲

in the wrong
{adj. phr.} With moral or legal right or truth against you; against justice, truth, or fact; wrong.
In attacking a smaller boy, Jack was plainly in the wrong.

Mary was in the wrong to drink from a finger bowl.

Since he had put pennies behind the fuses, Bill was in the wrong when fire broke out.
Compare: OUT OF THE WAY. Contrast: IN THE RIGHT.

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲