extenuate

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   formal: to lessen or try to lessen the seriousness of a fault or offense by offering a partial excuse or mitigating circumstance

   The apology may extenuate the offense, but it does not erase the harm.

2. 2
   verb

   formal: to reduce the force, extent, or effect of something

   The passage of time did little to extenuate the bitterness of the dispute.

From Latin extenuare, 'make thin, diminish, or weaken,' from ex- ('out, thoroughly') + tenuis ('thin'). English first used the word for making something slight or less substantial; its chief modern sense applies that reduction metaphorically to the seriousness of a fault or offense.

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