make an exception

Idioms  

1. Exempt someone or something from a general rule or practice, as in Because it's your birthday, I'll make an exception and let you stay up as late as you want. This expression was first recorded about 1391.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

make an exception

From time to time I’ll make an exception and settle into a relative page-turner: nothing with cliffhangers or lots of hand-to-hand combat, mind you, but with a brisker narrative pace.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 17, 2026

If an adviser is willing to make an exception for you, find out why.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 10, 2026

But we’ll make an exception for the shoe story, a genuine delight in an otherwise gloomy news world.

From Slate ● Mar. 14, 2026

Retiree Werner Strub agreed that "the conditions are so unusual that you can make an exception, because hospitals are full of people with fractures."

From Barron's ● Feb. 5, 2026

But this is your first time and I’ll make an exception.

From "Angela's Ashes: A Memoir" by Frank McCourt