| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. 2000. |
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| apology |
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| SYLLABICATION: | a·pol·o·gy |
| PRONUNCIATION: |   -p l -j |
| NOUN: | Inflected forms: pl. a·pol·o·gies
1. An acknowledgment expressing regret or asking pardon for a fault or offense. 2a. A formal justification or defense. b. An explanation or excuse: “The consequence of those measures will be the best apology for my conduct” (Daniel Defoe). 3. An inferior substitute: The sagging cot was a poor apology for a bed. | | ETYMOLOGY: | Latin apologia, from Greek apologi : apo-, apo- + logos, speech; see leg- in Appendix I. | | SYNONYMS: | apology, apologia, defense, justification These nouns denote a statement that excuses or defends something, such as a past action or a policy: arguments that constituted an apology for capital punishment; published an apologia expounding her version of the events; a defense based on ignorance of the circumstances; an untenable justification for police brutality.
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| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright © 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
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