excuse
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to regard or judge with forgiveness or indulgence; pardon or forgive; overlook (a fault, error, etc.).
Excuse his bad manners.
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to offer an apology for; seek to remove the blame of.
He excused his absence by saying that he was ill.
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to serve as an apology or justification for; justify.
Ignorance of the law excuses no one.
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to release from an obligation or duty.
to be excused from jury duty.
- Synonyms:
- free
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to seek or obtain exemption or release for (oneself ).
to excuse oneself from a meeting.
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to refrain from exacting; remit; dispense with.
to excuse a debt.
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to allow (someone) to leave.
If you'll excuse me, I have to make a telephone call.
noun
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an explanation offered as a reason for being excused; a plea offered in extenuation of a fault or for release from an obligation, promise, etc..
His excuse for being late was unacceptable.
- Synonyms:
- justification
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a ground or reason for excusing or being excused.
Ignorance is no excuse.
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the act of excusing someone or something.
-
a pretext or subterfuge.
He uses his poor health as an excuse for evading all responsibility.
-
an inferior or inadequate specimen of something specified.
That coward is barely an excuse for a man. Her latest effort is a poor excuse for a novel.
idioms
verb
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to pardon or forgive
he always excuses her unpunctuality
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to seek pardon or exemption for (a person, esp oneself)
to excuse oneself for one's mistakes
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to make allowances for; judge leniently
to excuse someone's ignorance
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to serve as an apology or explanation for; vindicate or justify
her age excuses her behaviour
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to exempt from a task, obligation, etc
you are excused making breakfast
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to dismiss or allow to leave
he asked them to excuse him
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to seek permission for (someone, esp oneself) to leave
he excused himself and left
-
euphemistic to go to the lavatory
-
an expression used to catch someone's attention or to apologize for an interruption, disagreement, or social indiscretion
noun
-
an explanation offered in defence of some fault or offensive behaviour or as a reason for not fulfilling an obligation, etc
he gave no excuse for his rudeness
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informal an inferior example of something specified; makeshift; substitute
she is a poor excuse for a hostess
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the act of excusing
Synonym Usage
Excuse, forgive, pardon imply being lenient or giving up the wish to punish. Excuse means to overlook some (usually) slight offense: to excuse bad manners. Forgive is applied to excusing more serious offenses: to forgive and forget. Pardon usually applies to a specific act of lenience or mercy by an official or superior: The governor was asked to pardon the condemned criminal. Excuse, apology both imply an explanation of some failure or failing. Excuse implies a desire to avoid punishment or rebuke. Apology usually implies acknowledgment that one has been in the wrong.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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excusablenessnoun
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excusalnoun
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excusernoun
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nonexcusablenessnoun
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self-excusenoun
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preexcuseverb (used with object)
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excusableadjective
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excuselessadjective
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excusiveadjective
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nonexcusableadjective
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self-excusedadjective
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self-excusingadjective
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unexcusableadjective
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unexcusedadjective
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unexcusingadjective
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excusablyadverb
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excusinglyadverb
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excusivelyadverb
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nonexcusablyadverb
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unexcusablyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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excusesimple
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excusessimple
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have excusedperfect
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has excusedperfect
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am excusingprogressive
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are excusingprogressive
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is excusingprogressive
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have been excusingperfect progressive
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has been excusingperfect progressive
Past
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excusedsimple
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had excusedperfect
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was excusingprogressive
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were excusingprogressive
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had been excusingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of excuse
First recorded in 1250–1300; (verb) Middle English escusen, excusen, from Old French escuser, excuser, from Latin excūsāre “to put outside, exonerate,” equivalent to ex- ex- 1 + -cūsāre, derivative of causa cause; (noun) Middle English escuse, excuse, from Old French excuse, derivative of escuser, excuser
Explanation
An excuse is an explanation for something that went wrong. When we give an excuse, we're trying to get someone to cut us some slack. When you finish dinner and ask, "May I be excused?" you've used one of many meanings of this word. It’s generally a reason for behavior: A note from your parents saying you have a doctor’s appointment can excuse you from school for the day. If your dog is sick, he has an excuse for barfing in the house. But be careful — making excuses can get awfully close to whining.
Vocabulary lists containing excuse
"Romeo and Juliet" by William Shakespeare, Act III
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"The War of the Wall" by Toni Cade Bambara
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"The House on Mango Street" and "The Road Not Taken"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The excuse this time is that his wife Elizabeth wants to open her own travel agency, and can’t get a bank loan.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026
Beijing has provided itself a handy excuse to launch more economic “stimulus” this summer to get back on track for the annual growth target.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 16, 2026
Fender, who originally released the track on his third solo album more than a year ago, said watching the song break chart records has "been ridiculous" and "an excuse to party".
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
This saves on lodging costs, and, as an added bonus, it’s a good excuse to see old friends.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 7, 2026
She said, “Suds, will you excuse yourself from Joey long enough to empty your wastebasket, please.”
From "Fourth Grade Rats" by Jerry Spinelli
“We haven’t made excuses, we’ve just continued to perform,” GM Chief Executive Mary Barra said in a Tuesday call with analysts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
“Mr. Brand makes no excuses for his actions, and knows that he harmed many as a result of his choices.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2026
Lots of excuses followed - such as Williams being on holiday, and the unavailability of tradespeople or supplies.
From BBC ● Jun. 28, 2026
But the majority refuses to look reality in the face and comes up with these neutral excuses.
From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026
Pluto was just another deadbeat godly dad making weak excuses.
From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan
Then she excused herself — someone else wanted to say what’s up.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026
You’ll be excused for viewing that shameless promotion with cynicism as long as you also leave room to appreciate it as an indicator of how far the group has pulled popular culture.
From Salon ● May 31, 2026
They looked like eighth-graders excused from pre-algebra to go to a water park.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 27, 2026
His 10th place there was seemingly excused as a minor infection was identified afterwards.
From BBC ● Apr. 9, 2026
But despite my pressing new activities, I was not excused from my music lessons.
From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly
A people can’t cry out for deliverance while refusing correction or ask God for justice while excusing wrongdoing in its own ranks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 15, 2026
I'm not excusing any of his behavior and I do think that if anyone is an unhealthy situation they have every right to leave and probably should leave.
From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2024
Other people were more forgiving, with some criticizing the negativity coming Andress’ way and excusing her rough performance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2024
“We all went in to make this — not excusing any kind of behavior — wanting to be extra kind to each other,” says Taylor-Joy.
From Seattle Times ● May 15, 2024
“He made a mistake,” Olanna said, and then wished she hadn’t because she didn’t want Kainene to think she was excusing Odenigbo.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
