Oops

[0217] My fault

🎲 I apologize
English Idioms
All Idioms

Explanation

  • A direct admission of responsibility or blame for a mistake, error, or negative outcome.
  • More explicit in taking responsibility than My bad.

Origin

  • Straightforward standard English phrase combining the possessive My with fault (meaning error, defect, or responsibility for wrongdoing).
  • Used commonly in both colloquial and slightly more formal contexts to assign or accept blame.

Synonyms & Related Expressions

  • My bad (More informal, often for minor things)
  • My mistake
  • I take responsibility / I accept responsibility (More formal)
  • It's on me / That's on me (Informal)
  • I messed up / I screwed up (Informal)
  • The buck stops here (Taking ultimate responsibility, often used by leaders)

Alternatives

Slang/Informal:

  • My bad
  • On me / That's on me
  • I dropped the ball (Failed responsibility)
  • I screwed up / I messed up

Vulgar/Emphatic (Acknowledging a significant error):

  • My fuck up / That was my fuck up
  • I fucked up / I really fucked that up

Milder/Formal:

  • I take full responsibility
  • The error was mine / I am responsible for the error
  • I apologize for my part in this
  • The responsibility lies with me

Situational Appropriateness

  • Can range from informal to semi-formal.
  • More appropriate than My bad for slightly more significant errors or in work contexts among peers or with a manager (shows accountability).
  • Still less formal than a full I apologize or I take full responsibility.

Misunderstanding Warnings

  • Generally clear and direct. Its straightforwardness is usually understood.
  • In some cultures, directly admitting fault might be less common, but the meaning of the phrase itself is unambiguous.

Examples

  • The team lost because I missed the final shot. It's my fault.
  • We were late because I forgot to set the alarm. Totally my fault.
  • I'm sorry the report had errors; that's my fault for not proofreading carefully enough.

Dialogue

Manager: The client complained they received the wrong version of the document. What happened?

Employee: That's my fault, boss. I uploaded the draft instead of the final version. I've already sent the correct one with an apology.

Manager: Okay, thanks for owning up. Please be more careful with version control next time.

Social Media Examples

  • Forum Post (Game Update): Update: The server crash earlier was due to a bad line of code I pushed. My fault, folks. Fix is deployed.
  • Group Chat (Project): Sorry team, I missed that detail in the requirements doc. My fault. Let's adjust the plan.

Response Patterns

  • Often reassurance: It's okay., Don't worry about it., It happens.
  • Sometimes sharing blame: It wasn't entirely your fault, we all made mistakes.
  • Sometimes acceptance, moving to solutions: Okay, it's done now. Let's figure out how to fix it.
  • Rarely, agreement with blame: Yes, it is. (This can sound harsh).

Common Follow-up Questions/Actions

  • The speaker might offer a more detailed apology or explain what they'll do to rectify the situation (It's my fault, I'm really sorry. I'll call them now to explain.).
  • The listener might discuss the consequences or work on finding a solution together.

Conversation Starter

  • No. An admission of responsibility for something that went wrong.

Intonation

  • Usually sounds sincere, acknowledging responsibility.
  • Stress typically falls firmly on fault: My FAULT.
  • Can be said with regret, simple acknowledgement, or even defensiveness depending on context.

Generation Differences

  • Used across all generations. A standard, common expression.

Regional Variations

  • Common in all English-speaking regions.
Oops
🎲 I apologize