Synonyms

vindicate

American

[vin-di-kayt] / ˈvɪn dɪˌkeɪt /

verb (used with object)

to clear, as from an accusation, imputation, suspicion, or the like.

to vindicate someone's honor.

Synonyms:

exonerate
to afford justification for; justify.

Subsequent events vindicated his policy.
to uphold or justify by argument or evidence.

to vindicate a claim.

Synonyms:

substantiate
to assert, maintain, or defend (a right, cause, etc.) against opposition.

Synonyms:

substantiate
to claim for oneself or another.
Roman and Civil Law. to regain possession, under claim of title of property through legal procedure, or to assert one's right to possession.
to get revenge for; avenge.
Obsolete. to deliver from; liberate.
Obsolete. to punish.

vindicate British

/ ˈvɪndɪˌkeɪt /

verb

to clear from guilt, accusation, blame, etc, as by evidence or argument
to provide justification for

his promotion vindicated his unconventional attitude
to uphold, maintain, or defend (a cause, etc)

to vindicate a claim
Roman law to bring an action to regain possession of (property) under claim of legal title
rare to claim, as for oneself or another
obsolete to take revenge on or for; punish
obsolete to set free

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

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Etymology

Origin of vindicate

First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin vindicātus (past participle of vindicāre “to lay legal claim to (property); to free (someone) from servitude (by claiming him as free); to protect, avenge, punish),“ equivalent to vindic- (stem of vindex “claimant, protector, avenger”) + -ātus -ate ¹

Explanation

Vindicate means to justify, prove, or reinforce an idea — or to absolve from guilt. If your family thinks you hogged the last piece of pie on Thanksgiving, you'll be vindicated when your younger brother fesses up. Vindicate derives from the Latin vindicatus, which is the past tense of vindicare, meaning "lay claim to" or "avenge." When a physicist proves a theory that his colleagues derided, he vindicates it. When a lawyer clears her client's name in a trial, she vindicates him. Machiavelli argued that the results he got vindicated his tactics — in other words, the ends justified the means.

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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:

vindicate vindicates vindicated vindicating

If that version is ever unearthed, it may perhaps vindicate the director.

From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026

Readers uninvested in Mr. Fukuyama’s crusade to vindicate himself—and to put naysayers in their place—will wish he’d spent more time on the details and heartaches of Japanese-American life in the years surrounding the war.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026

They can go into federal court and sue and vindicate their rights that way immediately.

From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026

The need "to punish the club and to vindicate those clubs who have complied with the relevant rules" is referenced.

From BBC ● Mar. 17, 2026

She was hoping this testimony was going to seal it, vindicate all the effort, the pretrial preparation, the way she and others had extended themselves to take on Reggie.

From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar added on X that the decision "vindicates Pakistan's consistent position that a binding international treaty cannot be unilaterally suspended or set aside".

From Barron's ● Aug. 31, 2026

To AI-safety experts, it vindicates what they have been warning about all along: that AI systems would cause real-world harms and evade attempts to control them.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026

These analysts will claim that the stock market’s huge rally to begin this week’s trading vindicates their beliefs.

From MarketWatch ● Mar. 23, 2026

"When you see that bond, and just that love she had for the lambs, it vindicates the decision."

From BBC ● Feb. 11, 2026

Mr. Goschen vindicates the legitimacy of Government interference with the housing of the people, on the ground that it is the business of Government to see justice done between man and man.

From Contemporary Socialism by John Rae

The result also vindicated Van’s claim to the championship.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 20, 2026

Canadian Blake Parnham recalled that moment: "I was sobbing watching the game at home because I felt so vindicated, that Buffalo is different."

From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026

Admirers cheered that the court had at last vindicated Andrew Johnson.

From Slate ● Sep. 16, 2026

The billionaire publicly doubted the podcaster’s reporting, which has been vindicated.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026

By the time she stalked out of Dona Luz headquarters two hours later, having been badgered unmercifully and then vindicated at least partially by rent-a-car records in the capital, Abby was fuming.

From "The Milagro Beanfield War" by John Nichols

So watching the rest of the world finally catch up feels a little vindicating.

From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026

But the case was a close one with only five justices full-throatedly vindicating the Fourth Amendment’s privacy protection goals.

From Slate ● Jul. 1, 2026

Now, another war is vindicating Beijing’s decision to view this as a critical sector.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026

Th suit claims they failed to take action despite Vidal’s testimony vindicating Saldana.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 17, 2025

Thus vindicating those who bore influence in her formative years.

From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023