extenuate

ex·ten·u·ate

E0296000 (ĭk-stĕn′yo͞o-āt′)tr.v. ex·ten·u·at·ed, ex·ten·u·at·ing, ex·ten·u·ates 1. To lessen or appear to lessen the seriousness or extent of (an offense, for example), especially by providing partial excuses: extenuated his crime as part of his testimony.2. Archaic a. To make thin or emaciated.b. To mitigate or lessen.c. To belittle; disparage.

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[Latin extenuāre, extenuāt- : ex-, ex- + tenuāre, to make thin (from tenuis, thin; see ten- in Indo-European roots).]

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ex·ten′u·a′tive adj. & n.ex·ten′u·a′tor n.ex·ten′u·a·to′ry (-ə-tôr′ē) adj.

extenuate

(ɪkˈstɛnjʊˌeɪt) vb (tr) 1. (Law) to represent (an offence, a fault, etc) as being less serious than it appears, as by showing mitigating circumstances2. to cause to be or appear less serious; mitigate3. to underestimate or make light of4. archaic a. to emaciate or weakenb. to dilute or thin out[C16: from Latin extenuāre to make thin, from tenuis thin, frail] exˈtenuˌating adj exˈtenuˌatingly adv exˌtenuˈation n exˈtenuˌator n exˈtenuatory adj

ex•ten•u•ate

(ɪkˈstɛn yuˌeɪt)

v.t. -at•ed, -at•ing. 1. to make or try to make seem less serious esp. by offering excuses: extenuating circumstances. 2. Archaic. a. to make light of. b. to make thin, lean, or emaciated. c. to reduce the consistency or density of. [1375–1425; late Middle English (adj.) < Latin extenuātus, past participle of extenuāre=ex- ex-¹ + tenuāre to make thin] ex•ten′u•at`ing•ly, adv. ex•ten′u•a`tive, ex•ten′u•a•to`ry (-əˌtɔr i, -ˌtoʊr i) adj. ex•ten′u•a`tor, n.

extenuate

- Comes from the Latin verb extenuare, "make thin or lean," and originally meant "to treat as of small importance, make light of."See also related terms for lean.

extenuate

Past participle: extenuated
Gerund: extenuating

Imperative
extenuate
extenuate

Present
I extenuate
you extenuate
he/she/it extenuates
we extenuate
you extenuate
they extenuate

Preterite
I extenuated
you extenuated
he/she/it extenuated
we extenuated
you extenuated
they extenuated

Present Continuous
I am extenuating
you are extenuating
he/she/it is extenuating
we are extenuating
you are extenuating
they are extenuating

Present Perfect
I have extenuated
you have extenuated
he/she/it has extenuated
we have extenuated
you have extenuated
they have extenuated

Past Continuous
I was extenuating
you were extenuating
he/she/it was extenuating
we were extenuating
you were extenuating
they were extenuating

Past Perfect
I had extenuated
you had extenuated
he/she/it had extenuated
we had extenuated
you had extenuated
they had extenuated

Future
I will extenuate
you will extenuate
he/she/it will extenuate
we will extenuate
you will extenuate
they will extenuate

Future Perfect
I will have extenuated
you will have extenuated
he/she/it will have extenuated
we will have extenuated
you will have extenuated
they will have extenuated

Future Continuous
I will be extenuating
you will be extenuating
he/she/it will be extenuating
we will be extenuating
you will be extenuating
they will be extenuating

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been extenuating
you have been extenuating
he/she/it has been extenuating
we have been extenuating
you have been extenuating
they have been extenuating

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been extenuating
you will have been extenuating
he/she/it will have been extenuating
we will have been extenuating
you will have been extenuating
they will have been extenuating

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been extenuating
you had been extenuating
he/she/it had been extenuating
we had been extenuating
you had been extenuating
they had been extenuating

Conditional
I would extenuate
you would extenuate
he/she/it would extenuate
we would extenuate
you would extenuate
they would extenuate

Past Conditional
I would have extenuated
you would have extenuated
he/she/it would have extenuated
we would have extenuated
you would have extenuated
they would have extenuated

Thesaurus

Verb

1.

extenuate - lessen or to try to lessen the seriousness or extent of; "The circumstances extenuate the crime"mitigate, palliatelaw, jurisprudence - the collection of rules imposed by authority; "civilization presupposes respect for the law"; "the great problem for jurisprudence to allow freedom while enforcing order"apologise, rationalize, apologize, rationalise, justify, excuse - defend, explain, clear away, or make excuses for by reasoning; "rationalize the child's seemingly crazy behavior"; "he rationalized his lack of success"

extenuate

verb1. To conceal or make light of a fault or offense:explain away, gloss over, gloze (over), palliate, sleek over, whitewash.2. Archaic. To make physically thin or thinner:slim, thin.

Translations

beschönigenexténuerannacquare