excuse (redirected from making excuses)

ex·cuse  (k-skyz)

tr.v. ex·cused, ex·cus·ing, ex·cus·es

1.

a. To explain (a fault or an offense) in the hope of being forgiven or understood: He arrived late and excused his tardiness in a flimsy manner.

b. To apologize for (oneself) for an act that could cause offense: She excused herself for being late.

2.

a. To grant pardon to; forgive: We quickly excused the latecomer.

b. To make allowance for; overlook: Readers must excuse the author's youth and inexperience. See Synonyms at forgive.

3. To serve as justification for: Brilliance does not excuse bad manners.

4. To free, as from an obligation or duty; exempt: In my state, physicians and lawyers are excused from jury duty.

5. To give permission to leave; release: The child ate quickly and asked to be excused.

n. (k-skys)

1. An explanation offered to justify or obtain forgiveness.

2. A reason or grounds for excusing: Ignorance is no excuse for breaking the law.

3. The act of excusing.

4. A note explaining an absence.

5. Informal An inferior example: a poor excuse for a poet; a sorry excuse for a car.

Idiom:

Excuse me

1. Used to acknowledge and ask forgiveness for an action that could cause offense.

2. Used to request that a statement be repeated.

---

[Middle English excusen, from Old French excuser, from Latin excsre : ex-, ex- + causa, accusation; see cause.]

---

ex·cusa·ble adj.

ex·cusa·ble·ness n.

ex·cusa·bly adv.

ex·cuser n.

---

excuse

vb [ɪkˈskjuːz] (tr)

1. to pardon or forgive he always excuses her unpunctuality

2. to seek pardon or exemption for (a person, esp oneself) to excuse oneself for one's mistakes

3. to make allowances for; judge leniently to excuse someone's ignorance

4. to serve as an apology or explanation for; vindicate or justify her age excuses her behaviour

5. to exempt from a task, obligation, etc. you are excused making breakfast

6. to dismiss or allow to leave he asked them to excuse him

7. to seek permission for (someone, esp oneself) to leave he excused himself and left

be excused Euphemistic to go to the lavatory

excuse me! an expression used to catch someone's attention or to apologize for an interruption, disagreement, or social indiscretion

n [ɪkˈskjuːs]

1. an explanation offered in defence of some fault or offensive behaviour or as a reason for not fulfilling an obligation, etc. he gave no excuse for his rudeness

2. Informal an inferior example of something specified; makeshift substitute she is a poor excuse for a hostess

3. the act of excusing

[from Latin excusāre, from ex-¹ + -cūsare, from causa cause, accusation]

excusable  adj

excusableness  n

excusably  adv

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	excuse - 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" exculpation, self-justification, alibi vindication, defense, defence - the justification for some act or belief; "he offered a persuasive defense of the theory" extenuation, mitigation - a partial excuse to mitigate censure; an attempt to represent an offense as less serious than it appears by showing mitigating circumstances
	2.	excuse - a note explaining an absence; "he had to get his mother to write an excuse for him" billet, short letter, note, line - a short personal letter; "drop me a line when you get there"
	3.	excuse - a poor example; "it was an apology for a meal"; "a poor excuse for an automobile" apology example, instance, illustration, representative - an item of information that is typical of a class or group; "this patient provides a typical example of the syndrome"; "there is an example on page 10"
Verb	1.	excuse - accept an excuse for; "Please excuse my dirty hands" pardon forgive - stop blaming or grant forgiveness; "I forgave him his infidelity"; "She cannot forgive him for forgetting her birthday"
	2.	excuse - grant exemption or release to; "Please excuse me from this class" let off, exempt, relieve frank - exempt by means of an official pass or letter, as from customs or other checks absolve, justify, free - let off the hook; "I absolve you from this responsibility"
	3.	excuse - 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" explain alibi - exonerate by means of an alibi vindicate, justify - show to be right by providing justification or proof; "vindicate a claim"
	4.	excuse - defend, explain, clear away, or make excuses for by reasoning; "rationalize the child's seemingly crazy behavior"; "he rationalized his lack of success" apologise, rationalize, rationalise, apologize, justify colour, gloss, color - give a deceptive explanation or excuse for; "color a lie" plead - offer as an excuse or plea; "She was pleading insanity" defend, fend for, support - argue or speak in defense of; "She supported the motion to strike" extenuate, mitigate, palliate - lessen or to try to lessen the seriousness or extent of; "The circumstances extenuate the crime"
	5.	excuse - ask for permission to be released from an engagement beg off call for, request, bespeak, quest - express the need or desire for; ask for; "She requested an extra bed in her room"; "She called for room service"
	6.	excuse - excuse, overlook, or make allowances for; be lenient with; "excuse someone's behavior"; "She condoned her husband's occasional infidelities" condone forgive - stop blaming or grant forgiveness; "I forgave him his infidelity"; "She cannot forgive him for forgetting her birthday"

---

excuse

noun

1. justification, reason, explanation, defence, grounds, plea, apology, pretext, vindication, mitigation, mitigating circumstances, extenuation There is no excuse for what he did.
justification charge, accusation, indictment, imputation

2. pretext, evasion, pretence, cover-up, expedient, get-out, cop-out (slang), subterfuge It was just an excuse to get out of going to school.

3. (Informal) poor substitute, apology, mockery, travesty He is a pathetic excuse for a father.

verb

1. justify, explain, defend, vindicate, condone, mitigate, apologize for, make excuses for I know you're upset but that doesn't excuse your behaviour.
justify accuse, blame, correct, condemn, punish, compel, oblige, criticize, censure, hold responsible, chastise, chasten, point a or the finger at

2. forgive, pardon, overlook, tolerate, indulge, acquit, pass over, turn a blind eye to, exonerate, absolve, bear with, wink at, make allowances for, extenuate, exculpate He's a total bastard - excuse me for swearing.

3. free, relieve, liberate, exempt, release, spare, discharge, let off, absolve She was excused from her duties for the day.
free charge, sentence, convict, indict, arraign

excuse me I beg your pardon, sorry, pardon, pardon me Excuse me, but could I just squeeze past you?

Quotations
"And oftentimes excusing of a fault"
"Doth make the fault the worser by th'excuse" [William Shakespeare King John]
"Several excuses are always less convincing than one" [Aldous Huxley Point Counter Point]
"A real failure does not need an excuse. It is an end in itself" [Gertrude Stein Four in America]

Translations

excuse

A. [ɪksˈkjuːs] N (= justification) → excusa f, disculpa f; (= pretext) → pretexto m
there's no excuse for this → esto no admite disculpa
it's only an excuse → es un pretexto nada más
on the excuse that → con el pretexto de que ...
to make excuses for sb → presentar disculpas por algn
he's only making excuses → está buscando pretextos
he made his excuses and left → presentó sus excusas y se marchó
he gives poverty as his excuse → alega su pobreza
what's your excuse this time? → ¿qué excusa or disculpa me das esta vez?

B. [ɪksˈkjuːz] VT

1. (= forgive) → disculpar, perdonar
to excuse sb sth → perdonar algo a algn
excuse me! (asking a favour) → por favor, perdón; (interrupting sb) → perdóneme; (when passing) → perdón, con permiso; (= sorry) → ¡perdón!; (on leaving table) → ¡con permiso!
excuse me? (US) → ¿perdone?, ¿mande?(Mex)
now, if you will excuse me → con permiso ...
if you will excuse me I must go → con permiso de ustedes tengo que marcharme
may I be excused for a moment? → ¿puedo salir un momento?

2. (= justify) → justificar
that does not excuse his conduct → eso no justifica su conducta
to excuse o.s. (for sth/for doing sth) → pedir disculpas(por algo/por haber hecho algo)

3. (= exempt) to excuse sb (from sth/from doing sth) → dispensar or eximir a algn(de algo/de hacer algo)
to excuse o.s. (from sth/from doing sth) → dispensarse(de algo/de hacer algo)
after ten minutes he excused himself → después de diez minutos pidió permiso y se fue
to ask to be excused → pedir permiso
I must ask to be excused this time → esta vez les ruego que me dispensen or disculpen

---

excuse [ɪkˈskjuːs]

n → excuse f
an excuse to do sth → une excuse pour faire qch
an excuse not to do sth → une excuse pour ne pas faire qch
There's no excuse for such behaviour → Un tel comportement est inexcusable.
to make an excuse → trouver une excuse
to make excuses for sb → trouver des excuses à qn

[ɪkˈskjuːz] vt

(= justify) [+ behaviour] → excuser, justifier

(= pardon) [+ person, behaviour] → excuser
to excuse sb for sth → excuser qn pour qch
to excuse sb for doing sth (in present, future) → excuser qn de faire qch; (in past) → excuser qn d'avoir fait qch
excuse me! → excusez-moi!, pardon!
excuse me please (in crowd) → excusez-moi, s'il vous plaît
Excuse me, can I squeeze past please? → Excusez-moi, est-ce que je peux passer, s'il vous plaît?
excuse me? (US) (= what did you say?) → pardon?
now if you will excuse me, ... → maintenant, si vous (le) permettez ...

(= exempt) to excuse sb from sth [+ activity, task] → dispenser qn de qch
to be excused from doing sth → être dispensé(e) de faire qch

to excuse o.s. (= apologize) → s'excuser
to excuse o.s. for sth → s'excuser de qch
to excuse o.s. for doing sth (in past) → s'excuser d'avoir fait qch
ex-directory [ˌɛksdaɪˈrɛktəri] adj (British) ex-directory number → numéro m sur la liste rouge
to be ex-directory → être sur liste rouge
She's ex-directory → Elle est sur liste rouge.
to go ex-directory → se mettre sur liste rouge

---

excuse

vt

(= seek to justify) action, person → entschuldigen; such rudeness cannot be excused → so eine Unhöflichkeit ist nicht zu entschuldigen; to excuse oneself → sich entschuldigen (for sth für or wegen etw); he excused himself for being late → er entschuldigte sich, dass er zu spät kam; he excused himself by saying that his English wasn’t very good → zu seiner Entschuldigung sagte er, er spreche nicht gut Englisch

(= pardon) to excuse somebody → jdm verzeihen; to excuse somebody for having done something → jdm verzeihen, dass er etw getan hat; well, I think I can be excused for believing him → nun, man kann es mir wohl nicht übel nehmen, dass ich ihm geglaubt habe; excuse me for interrupting → entschuldigen or verzeihen Sie bitte die Störung; if you will excuse the expression → wenn Sie mir den Ausdruck gestatten; excuse me! (= sorry, to get attention, go past, after sneezing etc) → Entschuldigung!, entschuldigen Sie!; (indignant) → erlauben Sie mal!; well, excuse me for asking! → entschuldige, dass ich gefragt habe!

(= set free from obligation) to excuse somebody from (doing) something → jdn von einer Sache befreien, jdm etw erlassen; he is excused attendance → er muss nicht unbedingt anwesend sein; (pupil) → er ist vom Schulbesuch befreit; you are excused (to children) → ihr könnt gehen; can I be excused? → darf ich mal verschwinden (inf)?; he excused himself and left the room → er entschuldigte sich und ging aus dem Zimmer; and now if you will excuse me I have work to do → und nun entschuldigen Sie mich bitte, ich habe zu arbeiten

n

(= justification) → Entschuldigung f; there’s no excuse for it → dafür gibt es keine Entschuldigung; they had no excuse for attacking him → sie hatten keinen Grund, ihn anzugreifen; to give something as an excuse → etw zu seiner Entschuldigung anführen or vorbringen; he gave two reasons as an excuse for his action → er gab zwei Gründe zur Entschuldigung für seine Tat an

(= pretext) → Ausrede f, → Entschuldigung f; to make excuses for somebody/something → jdn/etw entschuldigen; they made excuses for not having done anything about it → sie brachten Ausreden an, warum sie nichts dagegen unternommen hatten; I have a good excuse for not going → ich habe eine gute Ausrede or Entschuldigung, warum ich nicht hingehen kann; it was raining — well, that’s your excuse → es hat geregnet — das ist wohl deine Ausrede or Entschuldigung; excuses, excuses! → nichts als Ausreden!; you’re full of excuses → du hast immer eine Ausrede; he’s only making excuses → er sucht nur nach einer Ausrede; a good excuse for a party → ein guter Grund, eine Party zu feiern

excuses pl (= apology) → Entschuldigung f; to offer one’s excuses → sich entschuldigen

an excuse for a steak → ein jämmerliches or armseliges Steak

---

excuse [ɐn ɪksˈkjuːs; ɐvb ɪksˈkjuːz]

1. n → scusa
there's no excuse for this → non ci sono scuse or scusanti per questo
on the excuse that ... → con la scusa or il pretesto che...
to make excuses for sb → trovare giustificazioni per qn

2. vt

a. (forgive) → scusare
excuse me! → mi scusi!
now, if you will excuse me ... → ora mi scusi ma...
excuse me? (Am) → come (dice), scusi?

b. (justify) → giustificare
to excuse o.s. (for (doing) sth) → giustificarsi (per (aver fatto) qc)

c. (exempt) to excuse sb (from sth/from doing sth) → esonerare or dispensare qn (da qc/dal fare qc)
to excuse o.s. (from sth/from doing sth) → farsi esonerare or dispensare (da qc/dal fare qc)
to ask to be excused → chiedere di essere scusato/a

---

excuse [ɐn ɪksˈkjuːs; ɐvb ɪksˈkjuːz]

1. n → scusa
there's no excuse for this → non ci sono scuse or scusanti per questo
on the excuse that ... → con la scusa or il pretesto che...
to make excuses for sb → trovare giustificazioni per qn

2. vt

a. (forgive) → scusare
excuse me! → mi scusi!
now, if you will excuse me ... → ora mi scusi ma...
excuse me? (Am) → come (dice), scusi?

b. (justify) → giustificare
to excuse o.s. (for (doing) sth) → giustificarsi (per (aver fatto) qc)

c. (exempt) to excuse sb (from sth/from doing sth) → esonerare or dispensare qn (da qc/dal fare qc)
to excuse o.s. (from sth/from doing sth) → farsi esonerare or dispensare (da qc/dal fare qc)
to ask to be excused → chiedere di essere scusato/a

---

excuse

v excuse [ikˈskjuːz]

1 to forgive or pardon Excuse me – can you tell me the time?; I'll excuse your carelessness this time. verskoon يَعْذُر، يَتَغاضى عَن изивнявам omluvit undskylde entschuldigen συγχωρώ perdonar, excusar andeks andma بخشیدن؛ پوزش پذیرفتن antaa anteeksi excuser לִסלוֹח क्षमा करना ispričati, oprostiti megbocsát memaafkan afsaka scusare 許す 용서하다 atleisti, dovanoti atvainot; piedot; attaisnot maafkan excuseren unnskylde wybaczać desculpar a scuza извинять ospravedlniť oprostiti opravdati förlåta, ursäkta ให้อภัย affetmek, bağışlamak 原諒 вибачати; прощати درگزر کرنا، معافی دینا tha thứ 原谅

2 to free (someone) from a task, duty etc May I be excused from writing this essay? verskoning يُعْفي освобождавам zprostit fritage befreien απαλλάσσω dispensar vabastama معذور داشتن؛ معاف کردن vapauttaa dispenser (de) לְשָחרֵר מְ- मुक्त करना izuzeti, osloboditi felment membebaskan veita undanþágu, sleppa við esentare, esonerare 免ずる 면제하다 atleisti atbrīvot (no pienākuma u.tml.) dikecualikan vrijstellen frita; gi lov til å gå zwolnić dispensar a scuti (de) освобождать от oslobodiť (od povinnosti), ospravedlniť (že nie) opravičiti osloboditi befria, låta slippa อนุญาตให้ไป görevden affetmek / hariç tutmak 允許某人不... звільняти کسی کو کسی فرض وغیرہ سے سبکدوش کرنا miễn cho 允许某人不...

[ikˈskjuːs] n

a reason (given by oneself) for being excused, or a reason for excusing He has no excuse for being so late. verontskuldiging عُذر извинение omluva undskyldning; påskud die Entschuldigung δικαιολογία excusa vabandus, ettekääne معذوریت؛ دلیل oikeutus excuse תֵירוּץ बहाना क्षमा का isprika mentség dalih afsökun scusa 言い訳 변명, 핑계 pasiteisinimas, dingstis atvainošanās; attaisnojums; aizbildināšanās alasan excuus unnskyldning, påskudd, begrunnelse (for) wytłumaczenie, usprawiedliwienie desculpa scuză оправдание ospravedlnenie opravičilo izgovor ursäkt, försvar ข้อแก้ตัว özür, sebep 借口 виправдання; відмовка معذرت، عذر خواہی lý do 借口

adj excusable [ikˈskjuːzəbl]

pardonable. verskoonbaar يُغْتَفَر، قابِل للعُذر извиним omluvitelný undskyldelig; tilgivelig; forståelig entschuldbar συγχωρητέος, δικαιολογημένος perdonable vabandatav قابل بخشش anteeksiannettava excusable שֶׁאֶפשָר לִסלוֹח עָלָיו क्षम्य opravdan megbocsátható bisa dimaafkan afsakanlegur scusabile 申しわけの立つ 용납되는 atleistinas, dovanotinas atvainojams; piedodams boleh dimaafkan vergeeflijk tilgivelig wybaczalny desculpável scuzabil простительный ospravedlniteľný opravičljiv oprostiv förlåtlig, ursäktlig ที่อภัยได้ affedilebilir, bağışlanabilir 可原諒的 прощенний قابل معافی có thể tha thứ được 可原谅的

---

excuse → عذر, يَعْذُر omluva, omluvit (se) undskylde, undskyldning entschuldigen, Entschuldigung δικαιολογία, δικαιολογώ disculpar, excusa puolustella, selitys excuse, excuser ispričati, isprika scusa, scusare 弁解, 弁解する 변명, 변명하다 excuseren, excuus unnskylde, unnskyldning usprawiedliwić, usprawiedliwienie desculpa, desculpar извинять, оправдание ursäkt, ursäkta แก้ตัว, ข้อแก้ตัว özür, özür beyan etmek lý do bào chữa, tha lỗi 借口, 原谅