Excuse
Ex`cuse´
| v. t. | 1. | To free from accusation, or the imputation of fault or blame; to clear from guilt; to release from a charge; to justify by extenuating a fault; to exculpate; to absolve; to acquit. |
| 2. | To pardon, as a fault; to forgive entirely, or to admit to be little censurable, and to overlook; as, we excuse irregular conduct, when extraordinary circumstances appear to justify it. |
| 3. | To regard with indulgence; to view leniently or to overlook; to pardon. |
| 4. | To free from an impending obligation or duty; hence, to disengage; to dispense with; to release by favor; also, to remit by favor; not to exact; as, to excuse a forfeiture. |
| 5. | To relieve of an imputation by apology or defense; to make apology for as not seriously evil; to ask pardon or indulgence for. |
| n. | 1. | The act of excusing, apologizing, exculpating, pardoning, releasing, and the like; acquittal; release; absolution; justification; extenuation. |
| 2. | That which is offered as a reason for being excused; a plea offered in extenuation of a fault or irregular deportment; apology; as, an excuse for neglect of duty; excuses for delay of payment. |
| 3. | That which excuses; that which extenuates or justifies a fault. |
EXCUSE. A reason alleged for the doing or not doing a thing. This word
presents two ideas differing essentially from each other. In one case an
excuse may be made in, order to own that the party accused is not guilty; in
another, by showing that though guilty, he is less so, than he appears to
be. Take, for example, the case of a sheriff who has an execution against an
individual, and who in performance of his duty, arrests him; in an action by
the defendant against the sheriff, the latter may prove the facts, and this
shall be a sufficient excuse for him: this is an excuse of the first kind,
or a complete justification; the sheriff was guilty of no offence. But
suppose, secondly, that the sheriff has an execution against Paul, and by
mistake, and without any malicious design, be arrests Peter instead of Paul;
the fact of his having the execution against Paul and the mistake being
made, will not justify the sheriff, but it will extenuate and excuse his
conduct, and this will be an excuse of the second kind.
3. Persons are sometimes excused for the commission of acts, which
ordinarily are crimes, either because they had no intention of doing wrong,
or because they had no power of judging, and therefore had no criminal will
(q.v.); or having power, of judging they had no choice, and were compelled
by necessity. Among the first class may be placed infants under the age of
discretion, lunatics, and married women committing an offence in the
presence of their husbands, not malum in se, as treason or murder; 1 Hale's
P. C. 44, 45 or in offences relating to the domestic concern or management
of the house, as the keeping of a bawdy house. Hawk. b. 1, c. 1, s. 12.
Among acts of the second kind may be classed, the beating or killing another
in self-defence; the destruction of property in order to prevent a more
serious calamity, as the tearing down of a house on fire, to prevent its
spreading to the neighboring property, and the like. See Dalloz, Dict. h.t.
abject apology,
absolution,
absolve,
acknowledgment,
acquittal,
acquittance,
alibi,
alibi out of,
allow,
amnesty,
apologize for,
apology,
basis,
be blind to,
blind,
breast-beating,
cause,
clear,
clearance,
clearing,
cloak,
color,
compurgation,
condonation,
confession,
contrition,
cop-out,
cover,
cover story,
cover with excuses,
cover-up,
decontaminate,
defence,
defend,
defense,
destigmatization,
destigmatize,
destigmatizing,
device,
discharge,
disculpation,
dismiss,
dismissal,
dispense,
dispense from,
dispense with,
disregard,
escape,
evasion,
except,
exculpation,
exempt from,
exemption,
exonerate,
exoneration,
explain,
explanation,
extenuate,
extenuation,
facade,
feint,
forgiveness,
foundation,
front,
give absolution,
give dispensation from,
gloss,
gloss over,
grace,
grant amnesty to,
grant forgiveness,
grant immunity,
grant remission,
grounds,
guise,
handle,
heedlessness,
ignore,
immunity,
indemnity,
indulgence,
justification,
lame excuse,
let go,
let off,
liberate,
lie out of,
likely story,
locus standi,
loophole,
make apology for,
makeshift,
mask,
mea culpa,
mitigate,
mitigation,
nonpros,
offer excuse for,
ostensible motive,
out,
overlook,
palliate,
palliation,
pass over,
penitence,
permit,
plea,
plead ignorance,
poor excuse,
pretense,
pretension,
pretext,
protestation,
public motive,
purgation,
purge,
purging,
put-off,
quash the charge,
quietus,
quittance,
rational ground,
rationale,
rationalization,
rationalize,
reason for,
reason why,
redemption,
refuge,
regrets,
release,
relieve,
remise,
remission,
remission of sin,
reprieve,
right,
save the necessity,
screen,
semblance,
set free,
sham,
shift,
show,
shrift,
shrive,
shrug off,
smoke screen,
spare,
sparing,
squirm out of,
stalking-horse,
stall,
stated cause,
stopgap,
story,
stratagem,
substitute,
subterfuge,
the big idea,
the idea,
the whatfor,
the wherefore,
the why,
trick,
underlying reason,
varnish,
veil,
verdict of acquittal,
vindicate,
vindication,
warrant,
way out,
whitewash,
wink at,
withdraw the charge,
worm out of