as in justifications
an explanation that frees one from fault or blame
"a really important business call" is no excuse for not paying proper attention to one's driving
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in ignores
to dismiss as of little importance
more often than not, voters are willing to excuse a candidate's youthful indiscretion
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in justifies
to be an acceptable reason for
having a female passenger in labor will generally excuse a little disregard for the speed limit
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in explains
to make (something) seem less bad by offering excuses
he's always excusing his chronic lying by claiming that everybody lies
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of excuses
Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 16 Sep. 2025
Bad Wi-Fi is basically a modern tragedy, and there are no excuses for living like that in 2025 anymore.
—PC Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Mike Vrabel doesn't exactly carry himself like a man inclined to make excuses for anything.
—Michael Hurley, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Sep. 2025
Moses didn’t use his ankle injuy or the Miami heat as excuses for his penalties.
—Doug Kyed, Boston Herald, 14 Sep. 2025
Such statements shift the focus away from Zarutska and her family and seem to make excuses for her brutal slaying.
—Chicago Tribune, Twin Cities, 11 Sep. 2025
But the scale of the intrusion makes these excuses hard to digest.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 10 Sep. 2025
These excuses don’t hold water.
—David A. Deptula, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
However, Milei should get credit for his quick, no-excuses concession speech on Sunday.
—Miami Herald, 10 Sep. 2025
Lincee Ray Published, EW.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Noun
When sheriff’s deputies were raiding his home in May, Mutch had excuses for both alleged crimes, according to the criminal complaint.
—Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 16 Sep. 2025
Bad Wi-Fi is basically a modern tragedy, and there are no excuses for living like that in 2025 anymore.
—PC Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Mike Vrabel doesn't exactly carry himself like a man inclined to make excuses for anything.
—Michael Hurley, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Sep. 2025
Moses didn’t use his ankle injuy or the Miami heat as excuses for his penalties.
—Doug Kyed, Boston Herald, 14 Sep. 2025
Such statements shift the focus away from Zarutska and her family and seem to make excuses for her brutal slaying.
—Chicago Tribune, Twin Cities, 11 Sep. 2025
But the scale of the intrusion makes these excuses hard to digest.
—Nick Paton Walsh, CNN Money, 10 Sep. 2025
These excuses don’t hold water.
—David A. Deptula, Forbes.com, 10 Sep. 2025
However, Milei should get credit for his quick, no-excuses concession speech on Sunday.
—Miami Herald, 10 Sep. 2025
Verb
When Glenna excuses herself to go check on Lady Ellen, Julia thanks the woman and then proceeds to sneakily follow her straight up to Ellen’s quarters.
—Lincee Ray Published, EW.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for excuses
Noun
-
The justifications for the slaughter which started out so white hot after October 7th have cooled now, become more immaterial and incoherent.—
Jack Sheehan
September 4,
Literary Hub,
4 Sep. 2025
-
The justifications are endless, as are the streams of books and websites making the case.—
Naomi S. Baron,
The Conversation,
13 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
For most companies and CEOs, the metrics would be preposterously out of reach — among them are an eight-fold increase in market valuation and a 30-fold increase in earnings — but that ignores Musk’s ability to marshal investor enthusiasm and pull off new product launches.—
Liz Hoffman,
semafor.com,
16 Sep. 2025
-
But this framing ignores reality.—
Israel Melendez Ayala,
Time,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
This year's installer icon is one of the ones that finally justifies years' worth of effort spent tracking and talking about the changes in macOS installer icons.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
15 Sep. 2025
-
Throughout, in interviews with Costa, Malafaia justifies his political aspiration with Biblical parables.—
Jon Lee Anderson,
New Yorker,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
In the sketch, Bargatze plays George Washington and explains the confusing nature of modern-day America.—
Rosa Escandon,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
-
Whereas previous metal pollution records extracted their silt, or evidence from areas far from their sources— upland peat cores or mountain and polar glaciers, Cambridge specifies –the most recent data comes from the epicenter of production, a paleochannel of the River Ure, Cambridge explains.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Trump claimed without evidence that McEntarfer had manipulated statistics for political reasons.—
Max Zahn,
ABC News,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Housing is one of the reasons anyone in tech will tell you that the industry is thriving in California largely in spite of regulations, not because of them.—
Reed Albergotti,
semafor.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The organization purchases medical debt for pennies on the dollar and then forgives it, focusing on individuals with high debt-to-income ratios.—
Beth Warren,
The Tennessean,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Trump pardons couple in 2025 Julie, 52, was sentenced to seven years at the Federal Medical Center in Lexington, though that sentence was eventually reduced.—
Marina Johnson,
Louisville Courier Journal,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
There are two adult pools, one with an infinity pool option that overlooks the beach.—
Essence,
Essence,
12 Sep. 2025
-
The land appropriately overlooks Omaha Beach where many of the Americans lost their lives.—
Jim Clash,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Excuses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/excuses. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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