excuse

[ verb ik-skyooz; noun ik-skyoos ]

/ verb ɪkˈskyuz; noun ɪkˈskyus /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: excuse / excused / excuses / excusing on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object), ex·cused, ex·cus·ing.

to regard or judge with forgiveness or indulgence; pardon or forgive; overlook (a fault, error, etc.): Excuse his bad manners.

to offer an apology for; seek to remove the blame of: He excused his absence by saying that he was ill.

to serve as an apology or justification for; justify: Ignorance of the law excuses no one.

to release from an obligation or duty: to be excused from jury duty.

to seek or obtain exemption or release for (oneself): to excuse oneself from a meeting.

to refrain from exacting; remit; dispense with: to excuse a debt.

to allow (someone) to leave: If you'll excuse me, I have to make a telephone call.

noun

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.

a ground or reason for excusing or being excused: Ignorance is no excuse.

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.

OTHER WORDS FOR excuse

3 extenuate, palliate.

4 free.

8 justification.

11 pretense, evasion, makeshift.

See synonyms for excuse on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

WILL YOU SAIL OR STUMBLE ON THESE GRAMMAR QUESTIONS?

Smoothly step over to these common grammar mistakes that trip many people up. Good luck!

Question 1 of 7

Fill in the blank: I can’t figure out _____ gave me this gift.

who

whom

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Idioms about excuse

Excuse me, (used as a polite expression, as when addressing a stranger, when interrupting or disagreeing with someone, or to request repetition of what has just been said.)

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

synonym study for excuse

1. 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. 8. 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 WORDS FROM excuse

ex·cus·a·ble, adjectiveex·cus·a·ble·ness, nounex·cus·a·bly, adverbex·cus·al, noun

ex·cuse·less, adjectiveex·cus·er, nounex·cus·ing·ly, adverbex·cus·ive, adjectiveex·cus·ive·ly, adverbnon·ex·cus·a·ble, adjectivenon·ex·cus·a·ble·ness, nounnon·ex·cus·a·bly, adverbpre·ex·cuse, verb (used with object), pre·ex·cused, pre·ex·cus·ing.self-ex·cuse, nounself-ex·cused, adjectiveself-ex·cus·ing, adjectiveun·ex·cus·a·ble, adjectiveun·ex·cus·a·bly, adverbun·ex·cused, adjectiveun·ex·cus·ing, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH excuse

alibi, excuse

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use excuse in a sentence

I told him, I thought if I kept making enough excuses, he would probably get the clue.
Junior Staffer Says Top Alaska Official Told Her to Keep Allegations of Misconduct Secret|by Kyle Hopkins, Anchorage Daily News|November 18, 2020|ProPublica
Coach Bill Belichick has spoken publicly about the team’s approach to the salary cap in recent years leaving the Patriots strapped this season for cap room, leading to follow-up questions about whether Belichick was making excuses.
The Patriots’ season isn’t fixed, but at least they avoided losing to the Jets|Mark Maske|November 10, 2020|Washington Post
In the latest edition of our Confessions series, in which we trade anonymity for candor, we hear from one agency exec who says that the “times are tough” excuse isn’t cutting it anymore.
‘How much do we want to get screwed?’: Confessions of an agency exec on lack of payment due to coronavirus|Kristina Monllos|September 24, 2020|Digiday
The same was true of states like Louisiana and Texas, which still required voters to provide an excuse to vote absentee.
There Have Been 38 Statewide Elections During The Pandemic. Here’s How They Went.|Nathaniel Rakich (nathaniel.rakich@fivethirtyeight.com)|August 3, 2020|FiveThirtyEight

As a result, only 19 percent of Americans believed that voters should need an excuse other than the pandemic to vote absentee.
Americans Mostly Support Voting By Mail|Nathaniel Rakich (nathaniel.rakich@fivethirtyeight.com)|July 24, 2020|FiveThirtyEight
Why are Palestinians granted a license of bloodlust as an excusable remedy for their suffering?
There Is No Moral Equivalent to the Murder of Three Israeli Teenagers|Thane Rosenbaum|July 2, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And what, exactly, would an excusable yearning be as opposed to an “inexcusable” one?
Berlusconi Exits, and an Era of Sexist Buffoonery Is Over|Lawrence Osborne|November 17, 2011|DAILY BEAST
When you engaged yourself to the young woman you were poor and a nobody, and the step was perhaps excusable.
Elster's Folly|Mrs. Henry Wood
And certainly a Pastor is excusable who fails to do things of which he has no knowledge.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614|Various
Et de verit vn Pasteur est excusable qui manque faire chose dont il n'a connoissance.
The Jesuit Relations and Allied Documents, Vol. II: Acadia, 1612-1614|Various
He is excusable; for how can a man whose digestion is just beginning understand that people could anywhere die of starvation.
The 'Characters' of Jean de La Bruyre|Jean de La Bruyre
This weakness was excusable, for the forest was growing very dark—lonely it always was—and full of strange sounds.
Menotah|Ernest G. Henham

British Dictionary definitions for excuse

excuse

verb (ɪkˈskjuːz) (tr)

to pardon or forgivehe always excuses her unpunctuality

to seek pardon or exemption for (a person, esp oneself)to excuse oneself for one's mistakes

to make allowances for; judge lenientlyto excuse someone's ignorance

to serve as an apology or explanation for; vindicate or justifyher age excuses her behaviour

to exempt from a task, obligation, etcyou are excused making breakfast

to dismiss or allow to leavehe asked them to excuse him

to seek permission for (someone, esp oneself) to leavehe excused himself and left

be excused euphemistic to go to the lavatory

excuse me! an expression used to catch someone's attention or to apologize for an interruption, disagreement, or social indiscretion

noun (ɪkˈskjuːs)

an explanation offered in defence of some fault or offensive behaviour or as a reason for not fulfilling an obligation, etche gave no excuse for his rudeness

informal an inferior example of something specified; makeshift; substituteshe is a poor excuse for a hostess

the act of excusing

Derived forms of excuse

excusable, adjectiveexcusableness, nounexcusably, adverb

Word Origin for excuse

C13: from Latin excusāre, from ex- 1 + -cūsare, from causa cause, accusation

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

excuse

OTHER WORDS FOR excuse

Idioms about excuse

Origin of excuse

synonym study for excuse

OTHER WORDS FROM excuse

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH excuse

Words related to excuse

How to use excuse in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for excuse

Derived forms of excuse

Word Origin for excuse