to excuse
∞
1.5
- verb
- /ɪkˈskjus/
:
eximir de
- After an hour or so, our host had to excuse himself as he had a meeting to attend.
- ask to be excused
- excused from class
- excused absences
Examples
-
A minute later, I was back and said, "Excuse me, sir, but are you..."
Fiction book (1990) -
Please, uh, excuse the mess.
-
Would you excuse me just for a moment?
-
Halfway through it, my father said excuse me and left the room.
Fiction book (1990) -
- I have business, if you'll excuse me.
-
Right after the meal, I excused myself and went to my room.
Fiction book (1990) -
Al asked some of the same questions the manager asked, then excused himself to confer with the manager.
Academic text (1992) -
Once the participants had received the debriefing statement, they were excused from the testing session.
Academic text (2004) -
After we finished exchanging greetings, I excused myself and started to undress.
Fiction book (1990) -
Sir, may I excuse myself from this meeting because I have another appointment?
Synonyms
201
3.2
Free someone from a duty or responsibility
75
3.5
To not punish someone or excuse them from a duty
30
4.1
To free someone officially from a rule or obligation
To give formal permission for someone to leave a country or school for a time
Antonyms
Idioms
Phrasal Verbs
Compounds
- Offensive
A very large number of weak reasons someone gives to avoid doing something
How Permissive
Surface Forms
Etymology
Excuse comes from the old Latin word excusare, made of ex- 'out' and causa 'cause' (like the word cause). It originally meant 'free from duty or blame', so to excuse yourself is to be allowed to leave or be absent.