exonerate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
exonerates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
exonerated,
past participle, past
-
exonerating
present participle
verb
-
to clear or absolve from blame or a criminal charge
-
to relieve from an obligation or task; exempt
Synonym Usage
See absolve.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
exoneratesimple
-
exoneratessimple
-
have exoneratedperfect
-
has exoneratedperfect
-
am exoneratingprogressive
-
are exoneratingprogressive
-
is exoneratingprogressive
-
have been exoneratingperfect progressive
-
has been exoneratingperfect progressive
Past
-
exoneratedsimple
-
had exoneratedperfect
-
was exoneratingprogressive
-
were exoneratingprogressive
-
had been exoneratingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of exonerate
First recorded in 1515–25; late Middle English, from Latin exonerātus (past participle of exonerāre “to unburden, discharge”), equivalent to ex- “out of, from; thoroughly” + oner- (stem of onus ) “a burden” + -ātus past participle suffix; see ex- 1, -ate 1
Explanation
To exonerate someone is to declare him not guilty of criminal charges. This word is pretty much only used in reference to proceedings in a court of law. A word with a similar meaning that might be familiar is “acquit.” When your next door neighbor was arrested for painting smiley faces on the front doors of all the houses on your block, evidence to exonerate him was discovered when the police found a young hooligan from the next street over with a basement full of paint canisters. The verb comes from the Latin exonerat-, meaning “freed from burden.” A criminal charge is certainly a burden, and when you're exonerated, you're freed from that burden.
Vocabulary lists containing exonerate
100 SAT Words Beginning with "E"
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Great Expectations
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Just Mercy
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
Federal officials stressed that this did not suddenly exonerate the lettuce.
From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026
But in far more cases—especially controversial shootings—it captured the chain of events clearly enough for investigators to exonerate officers.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
"We must not exonerate from all responsibility the seven decades that followed independence," he told the magazine, calling on African leaders to improve governance.
From Barron's ● May 11, 2026
He specifically asked if it would look for DNA evidence that could exonerate him - evidence that would point to an alternative suspect.
From BBC ● May 13, 2025
“That isn’t her doing,” Lazlo said, not to dismiss the threat, but at least to exonerate Sarai.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
An Oklahoma judge exonerates a man who spent nearly 50 years in prison on murder charges, the longest serving inmate to be declared innocent of the crime.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 18, 2024
He said in a statement earlier this week that he believed the report "exonerates me of all responsibility."
From Reuters ● Apr. 21, 2023
Body camera footage is more routinely made public, whether it exonerates the officers or raises questions.
From New York Times ● Jan. 28, 2023
While this story might be basically accurate, I don’t think it exonerates SBF the way he seems to think it does.
From Slate ● Jan. 13, 2023
I can think of no answer that exonerates me.
From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver
Only once before has an executed person been exonerated posthumously by a state entity.
From Slate ● Aug. 13, 2026
During Duncan’s campaign last year for New Orleans criminal court clerk, Murrill sent him a letter threatening “further action from this office” if he didn’t stop referring to himself as being exonerated.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2026
It pointed to a recent decision by the High Court in London that largely exonerated Renault and four other carmakers from charges that the devices were designed to cheat clean air laws.
From Barron's ● Jul. 27, 2026
That review, which was reported in 2011, exonerated the pilots of any blame but did not give a conclusion on the cause of the crash.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
The Death Penalty Information Center reported that Walter was the fiftieth person to be exonerated in the modern era.
From "Just Mercy" by Bryan Stevenson
Brian Atlas of the “Whatever” podcast posted a video of the alleged victim drinking with Peters, as if it were exonerating evidence instead of bolstering the criminal case against him.
From Salon ● Sep. 25, 2026
Ten years later, a district court judge ruled that he was factually innocent and threw out his conviction, citing the suppression of exonerating evidence by police, among other factors.
From Salon ● Aug. 10, 2026
Only in 1906, after many twists, did the high court of appeal overturn the original verdict, exonerating Dreyfus.
From Barron's ● Nov. 18, 2025
“We have already uncovered exonerating evidence and this case will be dismissed.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 7, 2025
Her hope,—all hope of softening Frances' heart and exonerating herself from blame, had failed utterly.
From It May Be True, Vol. II (of III) by Mrs. Henry Wood
Random Word
Spin the wheel and learn a new word!
Get a wordDefinitions 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.
