extenuation Meaning, Definition & Usage
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noun a partial excuse to mitigate censure; an attempt to represent an offense as less serious than it appears by showing mitigating circumstances
mitigation.
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noun to act in such a way as to cause an offense to seem less serious
mitigation; palliation.
WordNet
Ex*ten`u*a"tion noun
Etymology
L.Definitions
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. To listen . . . to every extenuation of what is evil. I. Taylor.
