exempt

[ig-zempt]

verb (used with object)

1. to free from an obligation or liability to which others are subject; release.

   A grade above B+ is required in order to exempt a student from an examination.

   Synonyms: except, relieve, excuse

adjective

1. released from, or not subject to, a particular obligation or liability, such as income tax.

   Charities and other exempt organizations must still file an information return with the IRS.

2. U.S. Law.,  relating to or being an employee to whom certain obligations imposed on employers under the Fair Labor Standards Act do not apply, generally because skill level and remuneration are relatively high or work is of a kind that cannot be strictly scheduled.

   Executive employees and creative professionals are among those considered exempt under the FLSA.

noun

1. a person who is exempt from an obligation, duty, etc.

2. (in Britain) exon.

exempt

/ ɪɡˈzɛmpt /

verb

1. (tr) to release from an obligation, liability, tax, etc; excuse

   to exempt a soldier from drill

adjective

1. freed from or not subject to an obligation, liability, tax, etc; excused

   exempt gilts

   tax-exempt bonus

2. obsolete,  set apart; remote

noun

1. a person who is exempt from an obligation, tax, etc

Other Word Forms

• exemption noun
• exemptible adjective
• nonexempt adjective
• preexempt verb (used with object)
• quasi-exempt adjective
• unexempt adjective
• unexempted adjective
• unexemptible adjective
• unexempting adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of exempt¹

First recorded in 1325–75; (adjective) Middle English, from Old French, from Latin exemptus, past participle of eximere “to take out, free, release,” equivalent to ex- ex- ¹ + emptus (past participle of emere “to buy, obtain”); (verb) late Middle English exempten, from Old French exempter, derivative of adjective exempt

Word History and Origins

Origin of exempt¹

C14: from Latin exemptus removed, from eximere to take out, from emere to buy, obtain

Example Sentences

“The simplest way to end it is not to try to exempt this group.”

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Relatedly, children born in an occupied enemy war zone were categorically exempt.

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The government has pulled billions of dollars in federal research funds, threatened the school’s tax exempt status and attacked its ability to enroll international students.

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Companies that build manufacturing plants in the U.S. are exempted from the duty.

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Lawmakers in September introduced bipartisan legislation that would exempt coffee products from tariffs, invoking historical outrage over the price of another beverage staple.

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Related Words

• excuse 
• exonerate 
• free 
• spare