Definitions for excuse
ɪkˈskyuz; -ˈskyusex·cuse

Princeton's WordNet(5.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. excuse, alibi, exculpation, self-justification(noun)

   a defense of some offensive behavior or some failure to keep a promise etc.

   "he kept finding excuses to stay"; "every day he had a new alibi for not getting a job"; "his transparent self-justification was unacceptable"

2. excuse(noun)

   a note explaining an absence

   "he had to get his mother to write an excuse for him"

3. apology, excuse(verb)

   a poor example

   "it was an apology for a meal"; "a poor excuse for an automobile"

4. excuse, pardon(verb)

   accept an excuse for

   "Please excuse my dirty hands"

5. excuse, relieve, let off, exempt(verb)

   grant exemption or release to

   "Please excuse me from this class"

6. excuse, explain(verb)

   serve as a reason or cause or justification of

   "Your need to sleep late does not excuse your late arrival at work"; "Her recent divorce may explain her reluctance to date again"

7. apologize, apologise, excuse, justify, rationalize, rationalise(verb)

   defend, explain, clear away, or make excuses for by reasoning

   "rationalize the child's seemingly crazy behavior"; "he rationalized his lack of success"

8. excuse, beg off(verb)

   ask for permission to be released from an engagement

9. excuse, condone(verb)

   excuse, overlook, or make allowances for; be lenient with

   "excuse someone's behavior"; "She condoned her husband's occasional infidelities"

Wiktionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. excuse(Noun)

   An explanation designed to avoid or alleviate guilt or negative judgment.

   Tell me why you were late uE000123945uE001 and I don't want to hear any excuses!

   Etymology: From excusen, from escuser, from excuso, from ex + causa; see cause and accuse.

2. excuse(Verb)

   To forgive; to pardon.

   I excused him his transgressions.

   Etymology: From excusen, from escuser, from excuso, from ex + causa; see cause and accuse.

3. excuse(Verb)

   To allow to leave.

   Etymology: From excusen, from escuser, from excuso, from ex + causa; see cause and accuse.

4. excuse(Verb)

   To provide an excuse for; to explain, with the aim of alleviating guilt or negative judgement.

   You know he shouldn't have done it, so don't try to excuse his behavior!

   Etymology: From excusen, from escuser, from excuso, from ex + causa; see cause and accuse.

Webster Dictionary(2.00 / 1 vote)Rate this definition:

1. Excuse(verb)

   to free from accusation, or the imputation of fault or blame; to clear from guilt; to release from a charge; to justify by extenuating a fault; to exculpate; to absolve; to acquit

2. Excuse(verb)

   to pardon, as a fault; to forgive entirely, or to admit to be little censurable, and to overlook; as, we excuse irregular conduct, when extraordinary circumstances appear to justify it

3. Excuse(verb)

   to regard with indulgence; to view leniently or to overlook; to pardon

4. Excuse(verb)

   to free from an impending obligation or duty; hence, to disengage; to dispense with; to release by favor; also, to remit by favor; not to exact; as, to excuse a forfeiture

5. Excuse(verb)

   to relieve of an imputation by apology or defense; to make apology for as not seriously evil; to ask pardon or indulgence for

6. Excuse(verb)

   the act of excusing, apologizing, exculpating, pardoning, releasing, and the like; acquittal; release; absolution; justification; extenuation

7. Excuse(verb)

   that which is offered as a reason for being excused; a plea offered in extenuation of a fault or irregular deportment; apology; as, an excuse for neglect of duty; excuses for delay of payment

8. Excuse(verb)

   that which excuses; that which extenuates or justifies a fault

Freebase(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Excuse

   In jurisprudence, an excuse or justification is a defense to criminal charges that is distinct from an exculpation. Exculpation is related concept which reduces or extinguishes a person's culpability and therefore a person's liability to pay compensation to the victim of a tort in the civil law. The "excuse" provides a mitigating factor for a group of persons sharing a common characteristic. Justification, as in justifiable homicide, vindicates or shows the justice. Thus, society approves of the purpose or motives underpinning some actions or the consequences flowing from them, and distinguishes those where the behavior cannot be approved but some excuse may be found in the characteristics of the defendant, e.g. that the accused was a serving police officer or suffering from a mental illness. Thus, a justification describes the quality of the act, whereas an excuse relates to the status or capacity in the accused. These factors can affect the resulting judgment which may be an acquittal, or in the case of a conviction may mitigate sentencing.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary(0.00 / 0 votes)Rate this definition:

1. Excuse

   eks-kūz′, v.t. to free from blame or guilt: to forgive: to free from an obligation: to release, dispense with: to make an apology or ask pardon for.—n. (eks-kūs′) a plea offered in extenuation of a fault: indulgence.—adj. Excus′able, admitting of justification.—n. Excus′ableness.—adv. Excus′ably.—adj. Excus′atory, making or containing excuse: apologetic.—Excuse me, an expression used as an apology for any slight impropriety, or for controverting a statement that has been made. [L. excusāre—ex, from, causa, a cause, accusation.]

British National Corpus

1. Written Corpus Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'excuse' in Written Corpus Frequency: #1312

2. Nouns Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'excuse' in Nouns Frequency: #1660

3. Verbs Frequency

   Rank popularity for the word 'excuse' in Verbs Frequency: #795

How to pronounce excuse?

1. Alex

   US English

   Daniel

   British

   Karen

   Australian

   Veena

   Indian

How to say excuse in sign language?

Numerology

1. Chaldean Numerology

   The numerical value of excuse in Chaldean Numerology is: 9

2. Pythagorean Numerology

   The numerical value of excuse in Pythagorean Numerology is: 5

Examples of excuse in a Sentence

1. Ben Cardin:

   The president was wrong to give China an excuse to come down against the protesters.

2. Christine Matthews:

   You'd have to work really hard to connect the dots between what Trump's lawyer said, which was ridiculous, and Republicans, i think -- excuse the pun -- that would be a trumped up story. That would be somewhat manufactured.

3. Surfside Police Detective Marian Cruz:

   [ He said ] he collects cactus plants, and that was his excuse.

4. Jules Renard:

   The only man who is really free is the one who can turn down an invitation to dinner without giving any excuse.

5. Jerry Yaokasin:

   Definitely we will now strictly enforce forced evacuation, we have no more excuse, we have gone through Yolanda, and to lose that many lives, it's beyond our conscience already.

Images & Illustrations of excuse

Popularity rank by frequency of use