explain away

verb

explained away; explaining away; explains away

Definition of explain away

transitive verb

1 : to get rid of by or as if by explanation

2 : to minimize the significance of by or as if by explanation explains his faults, but does not try to explain them away— M. K. Spears

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Examples of explain away in a Sentence

after the surprise attack, military leaders struggled to explain away the nation's unpreparedness tried to explain away his adulterous affairs by saying that men are promiscuous by nature

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The first known use of explain away was in 1688

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auxiliary

providing supplementary assistance

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