[v. ik-skyooz; n. ik-skyoos] 
verb, -cused, -cus⋅ing, noun | 1. | to regard or judge with forgiveness or indulgence; pardon or forgive; overlook (a fault, error, etc.): Excuse his bad manners. |
| 2. | to offer an apology for; seek to remove the blame of: He excused his absence by saying that he was ill. |
| 3. | to serve as an apology or justification for; justify: Ignorance of the law excuses no one. |
| 4. | to release from an obligation or duty: to be excused from jury duty. |
| 5. | to seek or obtain exemption or release for (oneself): to excuse oneself from a meeting. |
| 6. | to refrain from exacting; remit; dispense with: to excuse a debt. |
| 7. | to allow (someone) to leave: If you'll excuse me, I have to make a telephone call. |
| 8. | an explanation offered as a reason for being excused; a plea offered in extenuation of a fault or for release from an obligation, promise, etc.: His excuse for being late was unacceptable. |
| 9. | a ground or reason for excusing or being excused: Ignorance is no excuse. |
| 10. | the act of excusing someone or something. |
| 11. | a pretext or subterfuge: He uses his poor health as an excuse for evading all responsibility. |
| 12. | an inferior or inadequate specimen of something specified: That coward is barely an excuse for a man. Her latest effort is a poor excuse for a novel. |
| 13. | Excuse me, (used as a polite expression, as when addressing a stranger, when interrupting or disagreeing with someone, or to request repetition of what has just been said.) |
