excuse

Everyday

1. An excuse is a reason you give to explain why you did something wrong or did not do something, often not the real reason. tree →
2. To excuse someone means to forgive them for something small. tree →
3. To excuse someone from something means to let them not do it. tree →
4. «Excuse me» is a polite phrase to get attention, to ask someone to move, or to say sorry for a small thing. tree →

In the lessons

In manners, «Excuse me» is used to get someone's attention politely, to pass someone, after a burp, or to leave the table («May I be excused?»). In school, a note from a parent can excuse you from PE. In everyday life and truth, making excuses means blaming other things instead of saying sorry; «The dog ate my homework» is a famous excuse. Good habit: give a reason, then take responsibility.

Examples

• Excuse me, could you tell me the time? tree →
• Excuse me, can I get past? tree →
• That's not a good excuse for being late. tree →
• He always has an excuse for not doing his homework. tree →
• Please excuse the mess. tree →
• She was excused from PE because of her sore foot. tree →
• May I be excused from the table? tree →
• «The dog ate it» is the oldest excuse ever. tree →
• Perhaps there was some excuse for him. tree →

Note

Noun and verb sound different: the noun ends with an «s» sound (an excuse), the verb with a «z» sound (to excuse). Countable noun: an excuse, excuses. «Excuse me» is for before (getting attention); «sorry» is for after (an accident) in British English; Americans also say «excuse me» after.