extenuate
verb (used with object)
to represent (a fault, offense, etc.) as less serious.
extenuates
-
present tense formof extenuate (3rd person singular).present tense
Used to describe things happening now or regularly.
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.
“Prince is painfully removed from the youth culture in which he’s participating, which only extenuates the project’s problems,” it stated.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 18, 2015
Now compares Their different forms; now blends them, now divides, Enlarges and extenuates by turns; Opposes, ranges in fantastic bands, And infinitely varies.
From Poetical Works of Akenside by George Gilfillan
The Spaniard weaves no glamour about facts, apologises for nothing, extenuates nothing.
From The Spanish Jade by William Henry Hyde
The criminal is often enough not equal to his deed: he extenuates and maligns it.
From Beyond Good and Evil by Helen Zimmern
The story is told with a bared realism which the poignancy of the occasion freely extenuates.
From Atlantic Narratives Modern Short Stories by Elizabeth Ashe
