Thesaurus results for EXTENUATED

extenuated

verb

past tense of extenuate

as in excused

to make (something) seem less bad by offering excuses don't even try to extenuate their vandalism of the cemetery with the old refrain of "Boys will be boys"

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for extenuated

Verb

Yet Messi himself had been silent until now, after flying to his hometown Rosario in Argentina to attend Jorge’s funeral after he was excused by his current club Inter Miami.

— Tom Sanderson, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026
Patrick, who is divorced from Lindsay Clancy and has since remarried, was on the stand to start the day but was excused after emotional direct questioning about the day his children were killed.

— Matt Schooley, CBS News, 29 July 2026

Definition of excused

Verb

For example, a model that looked differentiated six months ago becomes a commodity, or a feature that justified a custom build suddenly has multiple vendor alternatives.

— Abhishek Bahl, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026
He's viewed by many as a vigilante whose actions against an unfair health care system were justified.

— Brian Mann, NPR, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of justified

Verb

But in a conversation with The Athletic, Bass explained that missing the entire 2025 season and undergoing sports hernia surgery taught him to value the entire NFL kicking experience, even the misses that come with such a high-pressure job.

— Tim Graham, New York Times, 21 Aug. 2026
However, Lai explained that the launcher could, in theory, deliver explosive payloads designed to detonate near a target.

— Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of explained

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.

Browse Nearby Words

extenuate

extenuated

extenuates

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Extenuated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/extenuated. Accessed 25 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of extenuated

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on extenuated

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

tilde

Popular in Grammar & Usage

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

How to Pronounce the Trickiest Menu Items

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 21

16 Glee-ridden Words from Schitt's Creek

Popular

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes