pardon

[pahr-dn]

noun

1. kind indulgence, as in forgiveness of an offense or discourtesy or in tolerance of a distraction or inconvenience.

   I beg your pardon, but which way is Spruce Street?

2. Law.

   1. a release from the penalty of an offense; a remission of penalty, as by a governor.

   2. the document by which such remission is declared.

3. forgiveness of a serious offense or offender.

   Synonyms: remission, absolution

4. Obsolete.,  a papal indulgence.

verb (used with object)

1. to make courteous allowance for or to excuse.

   Pardon me, madam.

   Antonyms: blame, censure

2. to release (a person) from liability for an offense.

   Synonyms: clear, acquit

3. to remit the penalty of (an offense).

   The governor will not pardon your crime.

   Synonyms: overlook, condone, absolve, forgive

interjection

1. (used, with rising inflection, as an elliptical form of I beg your pardon, as when asking a speaker to repeat something not clearly heard or understood.)

pardon

/ ˈpɑːdən /

verb

1. to excuse or forgive (a person) for (an offence, mistake, etc)

   to pardon someone

   to pardon a fault

noun

1. forgiveness; allowance

2. 1. release from punishment for an offence

   2. the warrant granting such release

3. a Roman Catholic indulgence

1. Also: pardon me.  I beg your pardon. 

   1. sorry; excuse me

   2. what did you say?

Other Word Forms

• pardonable adjective
• pardonableness noun
• pardonably adverb
• pardonless adjective
• nonpardoning adjective
• unpardonable adjective
• unpardonably adverb
• unpardoned adjective
• unpardoning adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of pardon¹

First recorded in 1300–50; (noun) Middle English pardoun(e), from Old French, Middle French pardon, pardun, perdun ( French pardon ), from Medieval Latin perdōnum ; (verb) Middle English pardonen, perdonen, from Anglo-French, Old French pardoner, perduner ( French pardonner), from Medieval Latin perdōnāre “to give freely, overlook,” equivalent to Latin intensive prefix per- per- + dōnāre “to give,” donation

Word History and Origins

Origin of pardon¹

C13: from Old French, from Medieval Latin perdōnum, from perdōnāre to forgive freely, from Latin per (intensive) + dōnāre to grant

Idioms and Phrases

see beg to differ; excuse me.

Synonym Study

Pardon, amnesty, reprieve are nouns referring to the cancellation, or delay with the possibility of eventual cancellation, of a punishment or penalty assigned for the violation of a military regulation or a civil law; absolution from guilt is not implied, merely a remission of the penalty. A pardon is granted to an individual, often by the action of a government official such as a governor, president, or monarch, and releases the individual from any punishment due for the infraction of the law, as a death sentence, prison term, or fine: to be released from prison with a full pardon. An amnesty is a pardon granted to a group of persons for past offenses against a government; it often includes an assurance of no future prosecution: to grant amnesty to political prisoners; an amnesty period for delinquent taxpayers during which no penalties are assessed. A reprieve is a delay of impending punishment, especially a death sentence; it does not cancel or remit the punishment, it simply delays it, usually for a specific period of time or until a decision can be arrived at as to the possibility of pardon or reduction of sentence: a last-minute reprieve, allowing the filing of an appeal to the Supreme Court. See excuse.

Example Sentences

Between the pardon, the compensation, the training and the Hunter-Lowell climbdown, the landscape for future whistleblowers has become a lot friendlier.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

D’Aquino filed a petition for a presidential pardon, to restore her stripped U.S. citizenship.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

That too many pardon the worst sins of the wealthiest evildoers is the fatal social flaw “The Beast in Me” observes with a piercing stare.

Read more on Salon

“I beg your pardon,” she said firmly, “but if I am going to be sailing among you, surely you can tell me the name of the ship.”

Read more on Literature

“I beg your pardon. Lady Constance must have mentioned it to me in passing. You know how she likes to gossip about the servants.”

Read more on Literature

Related Words

• absolution 
• allowance 
• amnesty 
• clemency 
• mercy 
• remission 
• reprieve