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forgive
(redirected from forgives)

   Also found in: Idioms 0.04 sec.
for·give  (fr-gv, fôr-)
v. for·gave (-gv), for·giv·en (-gvn), for·giv·ing, for·gives
v.tr.
1. To excuse for a fault or an offense; pardon.
2. To renounce anger or resentment against.
3. To absolve from payment of (a debt, for example).
v.intr.
To accord forgiveness.

[Middle English forgiven, from Old English forgiefan; see ghabh- in Indo-European roots.]

for·giva·ble adj.
for·giva·bly adv.
for·giver n.
Synonyms: forgive, pardon, excuse, condone
These verbs mean to refrain from imposing punishment on an offender or demanding satisfaction for an offense. The first three can be used as conventional ways of offering apology. More strictly, to forgive is to grant pardon without harboring resentment: "Children begin by loving their parents; as they grow older they judge them; sometimes they forgive them" Oscar Wilde.
Pardon more strongly implies release from the liability for or penalty entailed by an offense: After the revolution all political prisoners were pardoned.
To excuse is to pass over a mistake or fault without demanding punishment or redress: "There are some acts of injustice which no national interest can excuse" J.A. Froude.
To condone is to overlook an offense, usually a serious one, and often suggests tacit forgiveness: Failure to protest the policy may imply a willingness to condone it.

forgive
Verb
[-giving, -gave, -given]
1. to stop feeling anger and resentment towards (a person) or at (an action that has caused upset or harm)
2. to pardon (a mistake)
3. to free from (a debt) [Old English forgiefan]
ThesaurusLegend:  Synonyms Related Words Antonyms
Verb1.forgive - stop blaming or grant forgiveness; "I forgave him his infidelity"; "She cannot forgive him for forgetting her birthday"
concede, grant, yield - be willing to concede; "I grant you this much"
condone, excuse - excuse, overlook, or make allowances for; be lenient with; "excuse someone's behavior"; "She condoned her husband's occasional infidelities"
absolve, justify, free - let off the hook; "I absolve you from this responsibility"
absolve, shrive - grant remission of a sin to; "The priest absolved him and told him to say ten Hail Mary's"
remit - forgive; "God will remit their sins"
pardon - grant a pardon to; "Ford pardoned Nixon"; "The Thanksgiving turkey was pardoned by the President"
excuse, pardon - accept an excuse for; "Please excuse my dirty hands"
2.forgive - absolve from payment; "I forgive you your debt"
exempt, relieve, free - grant relief or an exemption from a rule or requirement to; "She exempted me from the exam"

forgive
verb excuse, pardon, bear no malice towards, not hold something against, understand, acquit, condone, remit, let off (informal) turn a blind eye to, exonerate, absolve, bury the hatchet, let bygones be bygones, turn a deaf ear to, accept (someone's) apology << OPPOSITE blame
Translations
Spanish forgive [pt forgave, pp forgiven] [fəˈgɪv, -ˈgeɪv, -ˈgɪvn] vtperdonar;
to forgive sb for sth/for doing sth → perdonar algo a algn/a algn por haber hecho algo

French forgive [forgave , pt , forgiven , pp ] [fəˈgɪv, -ˈgeɪv, -ˈgɪvn] vtpardonner;
to forgive sb for sth/for doing sth → pardonner qch à qn/à qn de faire qch

German forgive [fəˈgɪv] [forgave , pt , forgiven , pp ] vtverzeihen +dat, vergeben +dat;
to forgive sb for sth → jdm etw verzeihen or vergeben;
to forgive sb for doing sth → jdm verzeihen or vergeben, dass er etw getan hat;
forgive me, but ... → entschuldigen Sie, aber ...;
they could be forgiven for thinking that ... → es ist verständlich, wenn sie denken, dass ...

Italian forgive [pt forgave, pp forgiven] [fəˈgɪv, -ˈgeɪv, -ˈgɪvn] vtperdonare;
to forgive sb for sth/for doing sth → perdonare qc a qn/a qn di aver fatto qc

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