extenuation

noun

Definition of extenuationnext
as in confession

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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 extenuation Not surprisingly, fellow-travelers on the left criticized Conquest either from a wish to disbelieve the Soviet horrors or from an ideological sympathy that compelled extenuation of them. — Peter J. Travers, National Review, 29 Mar. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for extenuation
  1. confession
  2. acknowledgment
  3. atonement
  4. vindication
  5. out
  6. rationale
  7. rationalization
  8. justification
Noun
  • This week's quiz spotlights red carpet moments and Hollywood confessions.
    — Danielle Minnetian, FOXNews.com, 3 Oct. 2026
  • In Mississippi, for two decades, sheriff’s deputies routinely water-boarded and beat people in order to elicit a confession, according to a 2023 investigation by Mississippi Today.
    — Claire Healy, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of confession
Noun
  • Tip Toe’s acknowledgement of both Leo’s humanity and Clive’s works not to excuse the cruelty that will claim Leo in the end, but to reaffirm it as a choice.
    — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 2 Oct. 2026
  • But what an imaginative launching pad to interrogate the nature of greatness, the unsatisfactory acknowledgements of one’s own mediocrity, the seemingly unjust parceling out of genius from God.
    — Doni Wilson, Houston Chronicle, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of acknowledgment
Noun
  • The person receives the opportunity for atonement; the consequence is assigned elsewhere.
    — Voice of the People, New York Daily News, 20 Sep. 2026
  • The holiday, starting Friday night, marks the beginning of the Jewish High Holy Days, leading up to Yom Kippur, the Jewish day of atonement.
    — Jenna Prestininzi, Freep.com, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of atonement
Noun
  • Choi, a field engineer who has since returned to the same Georgia plant, said the claim is about vindication.
    — Hanna Park, CNN Money, 15 Sep. 2026
  • The performance seemed like an early vindication for Kiffin, the $13-million-a-year lightning rod.
    — Seth Emerson, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of vindication
Noun
  • Check-in and check-out are swift, valet has relatively little wait time, and the restaurant staff is accustomed to serving meals around performances at the Merrill Theater across the street.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 27 Sep. 2026
  • Jake Burger also went deep for the Rangers, who scored four runs with two outs in the second inning and never looked back.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of out
Noun
  • The divergence shows that buyers have become more selective while remaining willing to make significant bets when the strategic rationale is strong.
    — Rusty Wiley, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026
  • The six-justice majority did not explain its rationale for the decision.
    — Jack Birle, The Washington Examiner, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of rationale
Noun
  • The combined company’s streaming business, however, will be much bigger, with Paramount+, Pluto, HBO Max and Discovery+ all set to come under one roof, with rationalization likely.
    — Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Although the government later claimed national security concerns, attorneys for the outlets said that was a post-ban rationalization, violating their due process rights.
    — Ted Johnson, Deadline, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of rationalization
Noun
  • Just a few months later, in February 2003—a month before the invasion—Secretary of State Colin Powell presented a dramatic case to the United Nations, citing mobile weapons labs and hidden stockpiles of WMDs as justification for war.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 Oct. 2026
  • However, a federal judge temporarily restored the outlets’ access and said the administration had offered little support for its national-security justification.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of justification

Browse Nearby Words

extenuating
extenuation
extenuations
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Extenuation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/extenuation. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

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