vindicate
Americanverb (used with object)
-
vindicates,
present (3rd person singular)
-
vindicated,
past participle, past
-
vindicating
present participle
-
to clear, as from an accusation, imputation, suspicion, or the like.
to vindicate someone's honor.
- Synonyms:
- exonerate
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to afford justification for; justify.
Subsequent events vindicated his policy.
-
to uphold or justify by argument or evidence.
to vindicate a claim.
- Synonyms:
- substantiate
-
to assert, maintain, or defend (a right, cause, etc.) against opposition.
- Synonyms:
- substantiate
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to claim for oneself or another.
-
Roman and Civil Law. to regain possession, under claim of title of property through legal procedure, or to assert one's right to possession.
-
to get revenge for; avenge.
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Obsolete. to deliver from; liberate.
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Obsolete. to punish.
verb
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to clear from guilt, accusation, blame, etc, as by evidence or argument
-
to provide justification for
his promotion vindicated his unconventional attitude
-
to uphold, maintain, or defend (a cause, etc)
to vindicate a claim
-
Roman law to bring an action to regain possession of (property) under claim of legal title
-
rare to claim, as for oneself or another
-
obsolete to take revenge on or for; punish
-
obsolete to set free
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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vindicatornoun
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revindicateverb (used with object)
-
self-vindicatedadjective
-
self-vindicatingadjective
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unvindicatedadjective
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vindicatoryadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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vindicatesimple
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vindicatessimple
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have vindicatedperfect
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has vindicatedperfect
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am vindicatingprogressive
-
are vindicatingprogressive
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is vindicatingprogressive
-
have been vindicatingperfect progressive
-
has been vindicatingperfect progressive
Past
-
vindicatedsimple
-
had vindicatedperfect
-
was vindicatingprogressive
-
were vindicatingprogressive
-
had been vindicatingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of vindicate
First recorded in 1525–35; from Latin vindicātus (past participle of vindicāre “to lay legal claim to (property); to free (someone) from servitude (by claiming him as free); to protect, avenge, punish),“ equivalent to vindic- (stem of vindex “claimant, protector, avenger”) + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
Vindicate means to justify, prove, or reinforce an idea — or to absolve from guilt. If your family thinks you hogged the last piece of pie on Thanksgiving, you'll be vindicated when your younger brother fesses up. Vindicate derives from the Latin vindicatus, which is the past tense of vindicare, meaning "lay claim to" or "avenge." When a physicist proves a theory that his colleagues derided, he vindicates it. When a lawyer clears her client's name in a trial, she vindicates him. Machiavelli argued that the results he got vindicated his tactics — in other words, the ends justified the means.
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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:
Holmes and Evans welcomed the cameras, hoping they would help vindicate her.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
If that version is ever unearthed, it may perhaps vindicate the director.
From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026
They can go into federal court and sue and vindicate their rights that way immediately.
From Slate ● Aug. 14, 2026
Over mint tea, Mr. Saxe-Coburg-Gotha speaks with the precision of a man who has watched history vindicate and betray his dynasty in equal measure.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
Trouble arose only when authors used their stories to vindicate themselves against a great hurt or perceived injustice.
From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris
Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar added on X that the decision "vindicates Pakistan's consistent position that a binding international treaty cannot be unilaterally suspended or set aside".
From Barron's ● Aug. 31, 2026
To AI-safety experts, it vindicates what they have been warning about all along: that AI systems would cause real-world harms and evade attempts to control them.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 1, 2026
These analysts will claim that the stock market’s huge rally to begin this week’s trading vindicates their beliefs.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 23, 2026
Only a win vindicates the Canberra decision and can ensure a peaceful holiday in Noosa after the Test.
From BBC ● Dec. 3, 2025
He insists that the laws must be obeyed, and vindicates the habeas corpus act passed by Vermont at the last session of its Legislature from many of the censures that have been cast upon it.
From Harper's New Monthly Magazine, vol 1-98, 1850-1899 None by Various (magazine) Harper
Kliatchko said AI has also vindicated the company’s strategy of investing in its news organization, even when others questioned its value to the business.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026
It was brave, as a 17-year-old, to reject Manchester City and move to a new country, but the young winger was vindicated with rapid progress at Dortmund.
From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026
The result also vindicated Van’s claim to the championship.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 20, 2026
Admirers cheered that the court had at last vindicated Andrew Johnson.
From Slate ● Sep. 16, 2026
C.P. felt more than vindicated; he felt valued.
From "The Best of Enemies" by Osha Gray Davidson
So watching the rest of the world finally catch up feels a little vindicating.
From Salon ● Jul. 7, 2026
A second theme for this Court is vindicating liberties in the Bill of Rights.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
But the case was a close one with only five justices full-throatedly vindicating the Fourth Amendment’s privacy protection goals.
From Slate ● Jul. 1, 2026
“He looks forward to vindicating himself in court, where such matters are decided — and not in the media — based on admissible, material evidence, not rank speculation and unsubstantiated allegations.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026
Thus vindicating those who bore influence in her formative years.
From "In Cold Blood" by Truman Capote
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
