extenuating

adj.

1.

serving or tending to reduce the severity of guilt or blameworthiness; as, extenuating circumstances.

Adj.

1.

extenuating - partially excusing or justifying; "extenuating circumstances"

altering, apologetic, assuasive, bounding, diminishing, excusatory, excusing, extenuative, extenuatory, justificatory, justifying, lenitive, lessening, limitative, limiting, mitigating, mitigative, mitigatory, modificatory, modifying, modulatory, palliative, qualificative, qualificatory, refuting, rehabilitative, restricting, restrictive, softening, tempering, vindicative, vindicatory