Thesaurus results for EXPLAIN AWAY

explain away

verb

as in to explain

to give the reason for or cause of after the surprise attack, military leaders struggled to explain away the nation's unpreparedness

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in to excuse

to make (something) seem less bad by offering excuses tried to explain away his adulterous affairs by saying that men are promiscuous by nature

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of explain away Production is either exalted or explained away. —

Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Apr. 2026 Offscreen, some fans accuse Wyle of explaining away or downplaying his fictional character’s cruelty, and of a constellation of other sins, including envy of his fellow actors’ credentials. —

Scottie Andrew, CNN Money, 15 Apr. 2026 The gallium anomaly remains similarly tough to explain away. —

Quanta Magazine, 8 Apr. 2026 The famed African American journalist investigated lynchings across the South and wrote about the savage incidents that the white press had already explained away. —

Case Thorp, The Orlando Sentinel, 5 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for explain away

Recent Examples of Synonyms for explain away

Verb

Recovery of the bodies has been slow because of the chemicals and other hazards present at the site, Amos explained.

— Adam England, PEOPLE, 29 May 2026
Taken together, those cultural threads help explain why food – and especially meat – carries an outsized symbolic role in Texas politics, where the official state dish, adopted in 1977, is chili, defined by its significant meat base.

— Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 29 May 2026