as in justifies
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
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for extenuates
Verb
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This justifies using the average premium SVOD churn rate, even though Paramount+ has traditionally fallen short of it.—
Andrew Root,
Sportico.com,
27 Feb. 2026 -
The constraint, Dolci says, is not audience demand – the performance of existing screens more than justifies expansion – but the availability of suitable sites.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
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None of that excuses the crimes.—
Seth Abramovitch,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Mar. 2026
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Lost Lambs features an all-white cast in an anonymous American suburb, which excuses Cash from having to engage head-on with race.—
Malavika Kannan,
Vulture,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Which explains everything and nothing.—
Jeffrey Eugenides,
New Yorker,
4 Apr. 2026
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One explains why inflation exists, while the other tells you what to do when your rent goes up.—
Gerald Bradshaw,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Apr. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Extenuates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/extenuates. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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