1
as in to explain
to give the reason for or cause of
after the surprise attack, military leaders struggled to explain away the nation's unpreparedness
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2
as in to excuse
to make (something) seem less bad by offering excuses
tried to explain away his adulterous affairs by saying that men are promiscuous by nature
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of explain away
Trying to explain away a difficult play or a bad performance for some time while the storm is upon us is not an easy task to navigate or deal with and remain cool, calm and collected.
—
Chris Kirschner, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2025
This social belief explained away female self-expression as irrational and undesirable.
—Katie Collom, People.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Additional forms cannot explain away a 36% increase in officers’ use of deadly force — primarily, shooting people — from 44 incidents in 2023 to 60 incidents in 2024.
—Chicago Tribune, 20 July 2025
Everyone chases trends while their million-dollar ideas get explained away.
—Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for explain away
Chris Kirschner, New York Times, 16 Aug. 2025
This social belief explained away female self-expression as irrational and undesirable.
—Katie Collom, People.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Additional forms cannot explain away a 36% increase in officers’ use of deadly force — primarily, shooting people — from 44 incidents in 2023 to 60 incidents in 2024.
—Chicago Tribune, 20 July 2025
Everyone chases trends while their million-dollar ideas get explained away.
—Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for explain away
Recent Examples of Synonyms for explain away
Verb
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Here, Renzi explains how long the doc was in the works, why family members didn’t participate, and how Marco of all people helped Sheen to get off crack.—
Lynette Rice,
Deadline,
13 Sep. 2025
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At a time when contentious words dominate our conversations—think insurrection and fascism and fake news and woke—the need for dictionaries to chronicle and explain language, and serve as its watchdog, has never been greater.—
Stefan Fatsis,
The Atlantic,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
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It was announced by the Vikings head coach that McCarthy was excused due to being at the hospital with his fiancée to welcome the arrival of his baby boy.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Sep. 2025
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Likewise, with cameras on the trains in Charlotte, the public could be excused for wondering why there wasn’t a more immediate response after the event.—
Chicago Tribune,
Twin Cities,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
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That explains why the two-perspective structure couldn’t be justified in an episode like this and exposes the weakness of the conceit in the first place.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
10 Sep. 2025
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The excitement may be justified, but so is the concern when regulatory structures fail to keep pace with demand.—
Lindsay O'Neill,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Explain away.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/explain%20away. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.
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