pin the blame on
idiomatic phrase
: to assign (someone) the blame for something
When he got caught, he tried to pin the blame on someone else.
Eventually, researchers and governments did definitively pin the blame for that incident on the Russian government …—
Patrick Howell O'Neill
Patrick Howell O'NeillExamples of pin the blame on in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Starting with criticism for being out of the country when the fires began, Bass then attempted to pin the blame on fire chief Kristin Crowley, angering the firefighters union as well as people deeply sympathetic to the firefighters’ heroic efforts to battle the blazes.
—Douglas Schoen, Oc Register, 3 Aug. 2025
With a potential funding impasse coming this fall, Senator John Thune, Republican of South Dakota and the majority leader, has already begun the political effort to pin the blame on Democrats if the government shuts down.
—New York Times, 25 July 2025
The community is burning mad about that and folks pin the blame on moody Cole (Carson MacCormac) whose dad (Kevin Durand) is rich and is also the town’s mayor.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 8 May 2025
The American Federation of Government Employees, the largest union representing the federal workforce, is slashing over half of its staff around the country, pinning the blame on President Trump and his executive actions.
—Jonathan Easley, The Hill, 25 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pin the blame on
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Douglas Schoen, Oc Register, 3 Aug. 2025
With a potential funding impasse coming this fall, Senator John Thune, Republican of South Dakota and the majority leader, has already begun the political effort to pin the blame on Democrats if the government shuts down.
—New York Times, 25 July 2025
The community is burning mad about that and folks pin the blame on moody Cole (Carson MacCormac) whose dad (Kevin Durand) is rich and is also the town’s mayor.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 8 May 2025
The American Federation of Government Employees, the largest union representing the federal workforce, is slashing over half of its staff around the country, pinning the blame on President Trump and his executive actions.
—Jonathan Easley, The Hill, 25 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pin the blame on
Cite this Entry
“Pin the blame on.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pin%20the%20blame%20on. Accessed 1 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share