blameless

the word 'blameless' is a transparent english compound formed from two old english elements. the root 'blame' entered english from old french blasmer, which itself derived from late latin blasphemare, meaning 'to reproach, revile', a shift from the earlier ecclesiastical latin 'to blaspheme'. the suffix '-less' is a native english formative, from old english -lēas, originally meaning 'devoid of, free from'. the literal construction 'blame-less' therefore means 'devoid of blame'. over time, as 'blame' solidified its meaning as responsibility for a fault or censure, 'blameless' evolved to specifically describe a state of moral innocence or freedom from culpability, a direct and logical extension of its composite parts.

Structure: blame + less blame (from old english blāma, meaning 'reproach, blame', a noun of germanic origin) + less (from old english -lēas, an adjective-forming suffix meaning 'without, free from', of germanic origin).