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"
Used in a Sentence
excuse
How to use excuse in a sentence. Example sentences and definitions for excuse.
Editorial note
It is not an excuse for why people suck at math or programming.
Examples8
Definitions9
Parts of speech2
Quick take
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"
Meaning at a glance
The clearest senses and uses of excuse gathered in one view.
a note explaining an absence; "he had to get his mother to write an excuse for him"
a poor example; "it was an apology for a meal"; "a poor excuse for an automobile"
Definitions
Core meanings and parts of speech for excuse.
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"
See also: alibi, exculpation, self-justification
noun
a note explaining an absence; "he had to get his mother to write an excuse for him"
noun
a poor example; "it was an apology for a meal"; "a poor excuse for an automobile"
See also: apology
verb
accept an excuse for; "Please excuse my dirty hands"
See also: pardon
verb
grant exemption or release to; "Please excuse me from this class"
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"
See also: explain
verb
defend, explain, clear away, or make excuses for by reasoning; "rationalize the child's seemingly crazy behavior"; "he rationalized his lack of success"
See also: apologize, apologise, justify, rationalize, rationalise
verb
ask for permission to be released from an engagement
verb
excuse, overlook, or make allowances for; be lenient with; "excuse someone's behavior"; "She condoned her husband's occasional infidelities"
See also: condone
Example sentences
It is not an excuse for why people suck at math or programming.
In fact, that is always the excuse that is used to surveil everyone.
"My business isn't working that well" is not a good excuse to hold your subscribers hostage.
I really enjoy this campaign because it gave me an excuse to compare it with snake oil labels.
You've already convicted them in your mind and are looking for any excuse to execute them.
But that's no excuse for leading us toward a world where the only practical choices are proprietary chat clients and protocols.
Nothing in computing is worse than software that knows exactly what you want it to do, then gives some shitdick excuse as to why it's not going to do it in an effort to get you to jump through meaningless hoops.
This "non-apology" apology, is the classic example of a tattletale at school...the classic excuse of its not my fault cuz everyone is doing it...more importantly, it is wrong, and demonstrates a "our sh don't stick mentality" exchanging a tweet for a link is considered exchanging services for a link, which does indeed fall under the buying links category.
Frequently asked questions
Short answers drawn from the clearest meanings and examples for this word.
How do you use excuse in a sentence?
It is not an excuse for why people suck at math or programming.
What does excuse mean?
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"
What part of speech is excuse?
excuse is commonly used as noun, verb.