German

Verb

schuld sein ‎(irregular, third-person singular simple present ist schuld, past tense war schuld, past participle schuld gewesen, auxiliary sein)

1. to be at fault

   Wer ist schuld? – Who is at fault? / Whose fault is it?

Usage notes

• In formal standard and in colloquial German, the verb is constructed with an + the dative case or with dass + a relative clause:
  • Wer ist schuld an diesem Chaos? – "Whose fault is this chaos?" (more literally: “Who is at fault for this chaos?”).
  • Wer ist schuld [daran], dass die Pressekonferenz so chaotisch war? - "Whose fault is it that the press conference was so chaotic?"
• Colloquial German also exhibits a construction with accusative object: Wer ist dieses Chaos schuld? This is particularly common with a pronominal object: Wer ist das schuld? – “Who is at fault for this?” In this latter case the construction is also seen in formal writing, albeit infrequently and with regionally varying acceptance.