exoneration

noun

as in pardon
a setting free from a charge of wrongdoing the accused refused a plea bargain, asserting that he was innocent and would settle for nothing less than complete exoneration

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of exoneration The Ohio Parole Board recommended commuting a death row inmate’s sentence to life in prison as his bid for exoneration garners support from Kim Kardashian and other celebrities. — Josh Feldman, NBC news, 26 Aug. 2026 Florida also has the highest death row exoneration record out of any other state — 30 since 1973, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. — Miami Herald, 22 Aug. 2026 His case has been the subject of documentaries and true-crime podcasts and garnered celebrity attention from Kim Kardashian and actors Hilarie Burton and Jeffrey Dean Morgan, who all support his exoneration. — ABC News, 18 Aug. 2026 The assistant district attorney assigned to the case spoke to jurors in terms that seemed to guarantee Mulholland’s exoneration. — Los Angeles Times, 6 Aug. 2026 As a result, the number of exonerations nationwide increased from 25 in 1989 to 259 in 2022, according to the National Registry of Exonerations, a project operated by universities in Michigan and California. — Richard A. Webster, ProPublica, 6 Aug. 2026 The exoneration effort was a cause in which many of the festival participants were involved, and the Connecticut Witch and Culture Festival was a celebration of that success. — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 3 Aug. 2026 As presented in the Gang’s illogical scapegoating, fear-mongering, and overall manipulative self-exoneration, the debate turned into a farce. — Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 28 July 2026 Hadley also appeared in the episode, which aired a month after her exoneration. — Emily Blackwood, PEOPLE, 24 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for exoneration
  1. pardon
  2. forgiveness
  3. clearing
  4. acquittal
  5. vindication
Noun
  • Other presidential powers include the negotiation of treaties and the granting of pardons.
    — Tracy Grant, Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 Aug. 2026
  • One of the eight parole board members who took part in this case, former prosecutor Shontell Walker, was in favor of granting Noling a pardon, according to the board’s recommendation.
    — Corky Siemaszko, NBC news, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of pardon
Noun
  • Instead of anger, she’s leaned heavily on her faith to choose forgiveness.
    — Jacob Sisneros, Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Along with this came the profound dread that straight white men (like me) felt about saying a single wrong sentence and facing the possibility of permanent exile without forgiveness.
    — Charles Finch, The Atlantic, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of forgiveness
Noun
  • The data center also required extensive tree clearing, and the families say bright lights from the facility shine on their properties day and night.
    — AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 2 Sep. 2026
  • This plumbing falls into the same category as the ACH, SWIFT, card rails and clearing-and-settlement layer underneath the equities market.
    — Manny Khan, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of clearing
Noun
  • Her notoriety and the public’s fascination with the case, some historians have argued, led to Borden’s acquittal.
    — Addie Morfoot, Variety, 28 Aug. 2026
  • His acquittal was overturned and the case was merged with that relating to the coup attempt.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of acquittal
Noun
  • However, ultimate vindication, or at least mitigation on the legal side of things, as well as the potential of AI as a multiplier for Meta's business, is keeping us in the stock.
    — Paulina Likos, CNBC, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Strong feelings of certainty, relief, or vindication are often a signal that your identity has done the evaluating, not your critical thinking.
    — Big Think, Big Think, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of vindication

Browse Nearby Words

exonerating
exoneration
exonerations
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Exoneration.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/exoneration. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All