exemption

American  

[ig-zemp-shuhn] / ɪgˈzɛmp ʃən /

noun

• exemptions
  plural

1. the circumstances of a taxpayer, such as their age or number of dependents, that allow them to make certain deductions from taxable income.

2. the act of exempting.

3. the state of being exempted; immunity.

   Synonyms:

   exception

   Antonyms:

   liability

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Synonym Usage

Exemption, immunity, impunity imply special privilege or freedom from imposed requirements. Exemption implies release or privileged freedom from some duty, tax, etc.: exemption from military service. Immunity implies freedom from a penalty or from some liability, especially one that is disagreeable or threatening: immunity from disease. Impunity (limited mainly to the fixed expression with impunity ) primarily suggests freedom from punishment: The police force was so inadequate that crimes could be committed with impunity.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonexemption
  noun
• preexemption
  noun
• exemptive
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• exemptions
  plural

Etymology

Origin of exemption

First recorded in 1350–1400; late Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin exemptiōn- (stem of exemptiō ) “removal.” See exempt, -ion

Explanation

When you get an exemption, you don't have to do something. In the sixties, some people got exemptions from military service during the Vietnam War. We don't often think of being left out as a good thing, but when you use the word exemption, you mean that someone has been excluded in a positive way. Children are exemptions, or deductions, on tax forms; the more children you have the less taxes you pay. Some non-profits are tax-exempt; their exemption means they pay no taxes at all. Exemptions also spare people from fighting in wars and doing some jobs. An exemption gets you off the hook.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

exemption exemptions

Amazon’s robotaxi company Zoox will launch paid rides in Las Vegas on Monday after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration granted it a commercial exemption for purpose-built robotaxis.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

If your friend thinks she may qualify for Medicaid’s hardship exemption, don’t wait to get the application process started.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026

The government has been clear that it believes an exemption for manslaughter convictions is an all or nothing approach – and could therefore require a large amount of prison capacity.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2026

Those who received a “You may be subject to…” letter have until Sept. 18 to appeal to the city or apply for an exemption.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026

Her own father’s perfect exemption from any thought of the kind, the entire deficiency in him of all such sort of penetration or suspicion, was a most comfortable circumstance.

From "Emma" by Jane Austen

Only a small number of exemptions would apply, including the war widows pension and Armed Forces compensation.

From BBC ● Aug. 16, 2026

The council said guidance on exemptions and reasonable adjustments was still being finalised.

From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026

The letter provides the website where owners can apply for exemptions, which the Park Slope resident is doing.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026

And Section 5 of the order allows the secretary of state and Homeland Security to grant any exemptions they want to parents who might otherwise fall within the order’s orbit.

From Slate ● Aug. 11, 2026

Suddenly, seven million children-—children who had existed only as phantom exemptions on the previous year’s 1040 forms—vanished, representing about one in ten of all dependent children in the United States.

From "Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything" by Steven D. Levitt

Related Words

• discharge
• dispensation
• exception
• immunity
• privilege