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.
-
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.
- Synonyms:
- free
-
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.
- Synonyms:
- justification
-
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.
idioms
verb
-
to pardon or forgive
he 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 leniently
to excuse someone's ignorance
-
to serve as an apology or explanation for; vindicate or justify
her age excuses her behaviour
-
to exempt from a task, obligation, etc
you are excused making breakfast
-
to dismiss or allow to leave
he asked them to excuse him
-
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
-
informal an inferior example of something specified; makeshift; substitute
she is a poor excuse for a hostess
-
the act of excusing
Related Words
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
- excusable adjective
- excusableness noun
- excusably adverb
- excusal noun
- excuseless adjective
- excuser noun
- excusingly adverb
- excusive adjective
- excusively adverb
- nonexcusable adjective
- nonexcusableness noun
- nonexcusably adverb
- preexcuse verb (used with object)
- self-excuse noun
- self-excused adjective
- self-excusing adjective
- unexcusable adjective
- unexcusably adverb
- unexcused adjective
- unexcusing adjective
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.
Good try, I remember thinking at the time of this excuse.
From Slate • Apr. 13, 2026
That is no excuse for letting things go to hell, in this neighborhood or any other.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 11, 2026
When we approached our PBM about distributing the discounted version, the team refused, citing every flimsy excuse it could muster.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 7, 2026
"I regret and am deeply mortified by my actions in that state, and am committed to accountability, treatment, and meaningful change. It does not excuse what I did though."
From BBC • Apr. 7, 2026
Before I could come up with a convincing excuse to avoid death by indigestion, a hand fell on my lower back.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
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.
