- a reason, either true or invented, that you give to explain or defend your behaviour
- Late again! What's your excuse this time?
- I tried desperately to think of a good excuse.
- a lame/feeble/poor/flimsy excuse
- a reasonable/valid excuse
- I know I missed the deadline, but I have an excuse.
- excuse for something There's no excuse for such behaviour.
- excuse for doing something His excuse for forgetting her birthday was that he had lost his diary.
- You don't have to make excuses for her (= try to think of reasons for her behaviour).
- It's late. I'm afraid I'll have to make my excuses (= say I'm sorry, give my reasons and leave).
Synonyms reasonreasonexplanation ▪ grounds ▪ basis ▪ excuse ▪ motive ▪ justification ▪ pretextThese are all words for a cause or an explanation for something that has happened or that somebody has done.reason a cause or an explanation for something that has happened or that somebody has done; a fact that makes it right or fair to do something:- He said no but he didn’t give a reason.
- The most likely explanation is that his plane was delayed.
- She left the room abruptly without explanation.
- You have no grounds for complaint.
- On what basis will this decision be made?
- Late again! What’s your excuse this time?
- It gave me an excuse to take the car.
- There seemed to be no motive for the murder.
- I can see no possible justification for any further tax increases.
- He left the party early on the pretext of having to work.
- (a/an) reason/explanation/grounds/basis/excuse/motive/justification/pretext for something
- the reason/motive behind something
- on the grounds/basis/pretext of/that…
- (a) good/valid reason/explanation/grounds/excuse/motive/justification
Extra Examples- I don't want to hear any more excuses.
- Justin mumbled some excuse and left.
- What possible excuse could he have?
- She became moody and unreasonable, lashing out at the slightest excuse.
- He had no excuse for being so late.
- Don't let perfectionism become an excuse for never getting started.
- He's run out of excuses for not cleaning his room.
- She made some feeble excuse about the car having broken down.
- I seized on every excuse to avoid doing the work.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- perfect
- wonderful
- excellent
- …
- have
- give
- make
- …
- excuse about
- excuse for
- there is no excuse for…
- a good reason that you give for doing something that you want to do for other reasons
- Eating ice cream for a sore throat isn't really a cure, but I like it, so any excuse!
- excuse for something It's just an excuse for a party.
- excuse for doing something Any occasion is a good excuse for having a barbecue.
- excuse to do something It gave me an excuse to take the car.
- He tried unsuccessfully to find an excuse to leave.
- The demonstration was used as an excuse to impose martial law.
Extra Examples- She had to find a valid excuse for leaving the room.
- The children provided a convenient excuse for missing the party.
- Her mother's illness provided her with an excuse to stay at home.
- The political crisis is being used as an excuse to dock people's pay.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- perfect
- wonderful
- excellent
- …
- have
- give
- make
- …
- excuse about
- excuse for
- there is no excuse for…
- a very bad example of something
- Why get involved with that pathetic excuse for a human being?
Extra Examples- a sorry excuse for a man
- She's a pitiful excuse for an actress.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- lousy
- miserable
- pathetic
- …
- excuse for
- (North American English) a note written by a parent or doctor to explain why a student cannot go to school or somebody cannot go to work
Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French escuser (verb), from Latin excusare ‘to free from blame’, from ex- ‘out’ + causa ‘accusation, cause’.
Check pronunciation:
excuse