as in excusable
worthy of forgiveness
accidentally spilling your coffee on my newspaper is certainly a forgivable mishap
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Recent Examples of forgivable
Maybe if Monroe and Withers had any chemistry, Reminders of Him would be more forgivable.
—
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2026
Assistance is an interest-free, forgivable, self-amortizing loan in an amount subject to the city’s assessment of needs, not to exceed $24,000.
—Dallas Morning News, 27 Feb. 2026
Given that Trafford’s commitment in training and his performances on the pitch have not been adversely affected, his disappointment is understandable and, surely, forgivable.
—Sam Lee, New York Times, 17 Feb. 2026
Besides being fully forgivable after 30 years, no interest is charged to the borrower and all payments are deferred, so repayment is made in full only upon ownership change prior to 30 years.
—Mars King, Twin Cities, 8 Feb. 2026
Some old-school joints use frozen or canned options year-round—a forgivable workaround when doused with enough garlic.
—Becky Duffett, Bon Appetit Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
In the Bronx, New York, the HOME Down Payment and Closing Costs program offers up to $40,000 in aid, depending on need, with an incrementally forgivable zero-interest, five- to 10-year loan.
—Miami Herald, 15 Jan. 2026
The program, known as PPP, was intended to provide businesses forgivable loans to keep workers on their payrolls while they were shut down or operating at a loss because of public-health restrictions.
—John Kelly, CBS News, 11 Dec. 2025
There can be an argument as to what qualifies as forgivable.
—Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 29 Nov. 2025
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2026
Assistance is an interest-free, forgivable, self-amortizing loan in an amount subject to the city’s assessment of needs, not to exceed $24,000.
—Dallas Morning News, 27 Feb. 2026
Given that Trafford’s commitment in training and his performances on the pitch have not been adversely affected, his disappointment is understandable and, surely, forgivable.
—Sam Lee, New York Times, 17 Feb. 2026
Besides being fully forgivable after 30 years, no interest is charged to the borrower and all payments are deferred, so repayment is made in full only upon ownership change prior to 30 years.
—Mars King, Twin Cities, 8 Feb. 2026
Some old-school joints use frozen or canned options year-round—a forgivable workaround when doused with enough garlic.
—Becky Duffett, Bon Appetit Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
In the Bronx, New York, the HOME Down Payment and Closing Costs program offers up to $40,000 in aid, depending on need, with an incrementally forgivable zero-interest, five- to 10-year loan.
—Miami Herald, 15 Jan. 2026
The program, known as PPP, was intended to provide businesses forgivable loans to keep workers on their payrolls while they were shut down or operating at a loss because of public-health restrictions.
—John Kelly, CBS News, 11 Dec. 2025
There can be an argument as to what qualifies as forgivable.
—Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 29 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forgivable
Adjective
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The time when teachers gain popularity points for airing local team’s games, and kindly bosses understand that Thursday is an excusable sick day.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
15 Mar. 2026
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Some experts believe there are instances where the practice is excusable.—
Theara Coleman,
TheWeek,
9 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The justifiable fury over that incident was probably one of the reasons One Battle won in the first place.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
16 Mar. 2026
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Somehow, Jacob Elordi was able to pull a genuinely affecting performance out of this mess, which makes his nomination the only justifiable one of this movie’s bloated haul.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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But in this instance, the breach is entirely pardonable, because these two men, Jun and Arthur, have just gotten married.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Aug. 2025
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All this is to say that any excesses of enthusiasm for Friday (and Thursday) might seem pardonable, although each day reached the thermal pinnacle of the 80s.—
Martin Weil,
Washington Post,
19 July 2024
Cite this Entry
“Forgivable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forgivable. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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