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extenuation

[ ik-sten-yoo-ey-shuh n ]

/ ɪkˌstɛn yuˈeɪ ʃən /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR extenuation ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

the act of extenuating.

the state of being extenuated.

something that extenuates; a partial excuse: The youth of the defendant served as an extenuation.

Words nearby extenuation

extent, extenuate, extenuating, extenuating circumstance, extenuating circumstances, extenuation, extenuatory, exterior, exterior angle, exteriority, exteriorize

Origin of extenuation

1375–1425; late Middle English extenuacioun < Latin extenuātiōn- (stem of extenuātiō). See extenuate, -ion

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for extenuation

In extenuation of this summary attempt I hasten to explain that its chief merit is its lack of originality.
In Morocco|Edith Wharton
In every respect they were so evenly matched that the test of battle could have no aftermath of extenuation.
The Fight for a Free Sea: A Chronicle of the War of 1812|Ralph D. Paine
In extenuation I urge that he was a very weary, sick old man.
The Amenities of Book-Collecting and Kindred Affections|A. Edward Newton
I, too, have left my post of duty—but let the result be an extenuation of my desertion.
By Force of Impulse|Harry V. Vogt

He does not seem to have had even a fondness for fruit to plead in extenuation of his larceny.
Notes and Queries, No. 179. Saturday, April 2, 1853.|Various

The
2019 WORD
OF THE YEAR is...