pardon

1 of 2

noun

par·​don ˈpär-dᵊn 

1

: indulgence sense 4

2

: the excusing of an offense without exacting a penalty

offered a pardon to the draft evader

3

a

: a release from the legal penalties of an offense

b

: an official warrant of remission of penalty

a royal pardon later released him from a death sentence

—American Guide Series: Maryland

4

: excuse or forgiveness for a fault, offense, or discourtesy

I beg your pardon

She asked my pardon for taking up so much of my time.

pardon

2 of 2

verb

pardoned; pardoning ˈpärd-niŋ 

ˈpär-dᵊn-iŋ

transitive verb

1

a

: to absolve from the consequences of a fault or crime

b

: to allow (an offense) to pass without punishment : forgive

c

: to relieve of a penalty improperly assessed

2

: tolerate

Synonyms

Noun

• absolution
• amnesty
• forgiveness
• remission
• remittal

Verb

• forgive

Choose the Right Synonym for pardon

excuse, condone, pardon, forgive mean to exact neither punishment nor redress.

excuse may refer to specific acts especially in social or conventional situations or the person responsible for these.

excuse an interruption

excused them for interrupting

Often the term implies extenuating circumstances.

injustice excuses strong responses

condone implies that one overlooks without censure behavior (such as dishonesty or violence) that involves a serious breach of a moral, ethical, or legal code, and the term may refer to the behavior or to the agent responsible for it.

a society that condones alcohol but not narcotics

pardon implies that one remits a penalty due for an admitted or established offense.

pardon a criminal

forgive implies that one gives up all claim to requital and to resentment or vengeful feelings.

could not forgive their rudeness

Examples of pardon in a Sentence

Noun

The governor granted him a pardon.

He asked my pardon for taking so much of my time.

Verb

he eventually pardoned his sister after she apologized

I'm willing to pardon a little sloppiness of dress in such a kind and loving person.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The Wagner group began recruiting convicts in August 2022, with a promise of presidential pardons in exchange for signing a six-month contract. —Milana Mazaeva, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2024

Lee had been banned from working at Samsung again for five years, but South Korea's President, Yoon Suk Yeol, granted Lee a pardon in 2022 on a national holiday in the country. —Kate Irwin, PCMAG, 5 Feb. 2024

Khodorkovsky, who in 2004 was Russia’s richest person, was released in December 2013 after a pardon from Putin. —Devin Sean Martin, Forbes, 29 Mar. 2024

But Kim, despite fierce shareholder backlash, received a government pardon and returned to the company, becoming chief executive in 2021. —Max Kim, Los Angeles Times, 5 Mar. 2024

The pardons mean that thousands of those who were convicted of use and simple possession of marijuana on federal lands and in the District of Columbia will now be eligible for pardons. —Virginia Chamlee, Peoplemag, 19 Feb. 2024

Novák did not address the pardon on X. She was forced to cut short her trip to Qatar and return to Budapest to address the mushrooming scandal. —Benjamin Weinthal, Fox News, 10 Feb. 2024

All of the top Republican presidential candidates are pledging to grant pardons to hundreds of suspects rounded up and jailed in the Justice Department’s prosecution of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. —Paul Bedard, Washington Examiner, 15 Jan. 2024

If approved by the Governor's Council, the pardons would apply to all prior adult misdemeanor convictions for marijuana possession. —Neal Riley, CBS News, 13 Mar. 2024

Verb

And since falsifying business records is a state crime, only the New York governor—Kathy Hochul, a Democrat—could pardon him. —Nik Popli, TIME, 10 Apr. 2024

Trump could also simply pardon himself, although his power to do so is debated. —USA TODAY, 9 Apr. 2024

During the interview, Welker pushed McDaniel on her views on the legitimacy of the 2020 presidential election as well as former President Trump’s promise to pardon anyone punished for involvement in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol. —Brian Steinberg, Variety, 24 Mar. 2024

My concern is that the governor will either pardon DeValkenaere or commute his sentence. —Robert A. Cronkleton, Kansas City Star, 5 Mar. 2024

State law does not allow Newsom to pardon or commute the sentences of someone with more than one felony conviction without the high court’s approval. —Hannah Wiley, Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2024

Among them: Pretrial detention would count as time spent wrongfully imprisoned, and people pardoned by the governor would be eligible to file a claim. —Anna Clark, ProPublica, 26 Mar. 2024

Paul Manafort, a top adviser to Donald J. Trump’s 2016 campaign who was pardoned by the former president at the end of his White House term, is in discussions to return to help with the Republican National Convention, according to two people with direct knowledge of the matter. —Jonathan Swan, New York Times, 18 Mar. 2024

Four contractors were convicted in U.S. courts on charges related to the deaths, but were later pardoned by President Donald Trump. —Carol E. Lee, NBC News, 15 Mar. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French pardun, pardoun, from parduner

Verb

Middle English, from Anglo-French parduner, from Late Latin perdonare to grant freely, from Latin per- thoroughly + donare to give — more at parboil, donation

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing pardon

• beg one's pardon
• I beg your pardon
• beg pardon
• presidential/royal pardon
• pardon my French

Kids Definition

pardon

1 of 2 noun

par·​don ˈpärd-ᵊn 

: the excusing of an offense without a penalty

pardonable

ˈpärd-nə-bəl

-ᵊn-ə-bəl

adjective

pardonably

-blē

adverb

pardon

2 of 2 verb

pardoned; pardoning ˈpärd-niŋ 

-ᵊn-iŋ

1

: to free from penalty

2

: to forgive an offense

Legal Definition

pardon

noun

par·​don

1

: a release from the legal penalties of an offense

2

: an official warrant of remission of penalty as an act of clemency compare commute

3

: excuse or forgiveness for a fault or offense

pardon transitive verb