'Extenuation' definitions:
Definition of 'extenuation'
(from WordNet)
noun
A partial excuse to mitigate censure; an attempt to represent an offense as less serious than it appears by showing mitigating circumstances [syn: extenuation, mitigation]
noun
To act in such a way as to cause an offense to seem less serious [syn: extenuation, mitigation, palliation]
Definition of 'Extenuation'
From: GCIDE
- Extenuation \Ex*ten`u*a"tion\, n. [L. extenuatio: cf. F. ext['e]nuation.] The act of axtenuating or the state of being extenuated; the act of making thin, slender, or lean, or of palliating; diminishing, or lessening; palliation, as of a crime; mitigation, as of punishment. [1913 Webster]
- To listen . . . to every extenuation of what is evil. --I. Taylor. [1913 Webster]