as in excuse
an explanation that frees one from fault or blame
offered a weak justification for why he was so late
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Recent Examples of justification
The justification is that these parts can wind up in weapons at a time when the two countries are military rivals as well.
—
Ken Moritsugu, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2026
In his ruling, Cummings found that in case after case, agents conducting immigration enforcement during Operation Midway Blitz had either not provided justification for their assessment of flight risk or filed faulty field warrants.
—Laura Rodríguez Presa, Chicago Tribune, 9 Mar. 2026
In recent years, public universities have repeatedly—and successfully—invoked NIL as a justification to curb their statutory transparency obligations.
—Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 9 Mar. 2026
LaFleur even said Gary was never a high snap-count guy, a peculiar justification for someone making $24 million per year.
—Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 9 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for justification
Ken Moritsugu, Los Angeles Times, 9 Mar. 2026
In his ruling, Cummings found that in case after case, agents conducting immigration enforcement during Operation Midway Blitz had either not provided justification for their assessment of flight risk or filed faulty field warrants.
—Laura Rodríguez Presa, Chicago Tribune, 9 Mar. 2026
In recent years, public universities have repeatedly—and successfully—invoked NIL as a justification to curb their statutory transparency obligations.
—Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 9 Mar. 2026
LaFleur even said Gary was never a high snap-count guy, a peculiar justification for someone making $24 million per year.
—Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 9 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for justification
Recent Examples of Synonyms for justification
Noun
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As the spotlight settles on each of them, that person unspools a monologue, a candid account of their origins, their desires and dreams, their galaxy of excuses and explanations.—
Emily Nussbaum,
New Yorker,
12 Mar. 2026
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But resilience should not become an excuse to accept cycles of destruction.—
Sarah Al Asmar,
The Orlando Sentinel,
12 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The reasons for this are manifold, but include the fact that the Academy’s directors’ branch, which decides on the nominations, is still predominantly male, and has historically overlooked the work of women.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
11 Mar. 2026
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Mansfield Summit Coach Emund Pritchett said the program lost 7 players from last year’s team for various reasons, but some could’ve been back.—
Cody Thorn,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
11 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Justification.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/justification. Accessed 17 Mar. 2026.
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