- (British English also free pardon)[countable] (law) an official decision not to punish somebody for a crime, or to say that somebody is not guilty of a crime
- to ask/grant/receive a pardon
- a royal/presidential pardon
- The government offered a free pardon to the rebels.
Extra ExamplesTopics Law and justicec2- She asked for a pardon for her crime.
- The king issued a general pardon to all those involved in the rebellion.
- posthumous pardons granted to soldiers shot for cowardice
- He would soon be granted a pardon, returning to England a year later.
- They were released from prison yesterday as a result of a presidential pardon.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- full
- conditional
- general
- …
- give somebody
- grant somebody
- offer somebody
- …
- pardon for
- [uncountable] (formal) pardon (for something) the action of forgiving somebody for something synonym forgiveness
- He asked her pardon for having deceived her.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- full
- conditional
- general
- …
- give somebody
- grant somebody
- offer somebody
- …
- pardon for
Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French pardun (noun), pardoner (verb), from medieval Latin perdonare ‘concede, remit’, from per- ‘completely’ + donare ‘give’.
Idioms
See pardon in the Oxford Advanced American Dictionarybeg somebody’s pardon
- (formal, especially British English) to ask somebody to forgive you for something you have said or done
- He returned to beg her pardon for his sudden outburst.
I beg your pardon
- (formal) used to tell somebody that you are sorry for something you have said or done
- I beg your pardon, I thought that was my coat.
- used to ask somebody to repeat what they have just said because you did not hear
- ‘It's on Duke Street.’ ‘I beg your pardon.’ ‘Duke Street.’
- (British English) used to tell somebody that you are offended by what they have just said or by the way that they have said it
- ‘Just go away.’ ‘I beg your pardon!’
Check pronunciation:
pardon