verb
extenuate
ik-STEN-yoo-ayt/ɪkstˈɛnjuˌeɪt/
To make wrongdoing seem less serious by offering a partial excuse.
His difficult circumstances extenuate the offense but do not excuse it.
Etymology
“Make thin” became a figurative way to describe reducing something’s importance or apparent seriousness. Applied to wrongdoing, extenuate means making the blame seem smaller through excuses.
In context
the author's refusal to extenuate or find quibbling excuses for the more dislikable qualities he feels bound to confess
More examples
- Her lawyer argues that threats from her employer extenuate her wrongdoing.
- His youth extenuated his misconduct in the judge's eyes.
- The school considers extenuating circumstances before deciding on a punishment.
Forms
extenuate · extenuates · extenuated · extenuating
extenuation noun — The act of making wrongdoing less blameworthy.