Exonerate

//ɪɡˈzɒnəɹeɪt// adj, verb

adj, verb ·Uncommon ·College level

Definitions

Verb
  1. 1
    To relieve (someone or something) of a load; to unburden (a load). archaic, transitive
  2. 2
    pronounce not guilty of criminal charges wordnet
  3. 3
    Of a body of water: to discharge or empty (itself). obsolete, reflexive

    "I would examine the Caſpian Sea, and ſee where and how it exonerates it ſelfe, after it hath taken in Volga, Iaxares, Oxus, and thoſe great rivers; at the mouth of Oby, or where?"

  4. 4
    To free (someone) from an obligation, responsibility or task. transitive
  5. 5
    To free (someone) from accusation or blame. transitive
Adjective
  1. 1
    Freed from an obligation; freed from accusation or blame; acquitted, exonerated. archaic

Synonyms

All synonyms
acquitacquitassoilclearexculpateabsolve

Example

More examples

"The DNA here doesn't exonerate Tom."

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Middle English exoneraten (attested in past participle exonerated), from Latin exonerātus, past perfect participle of exonerō (“to discharge, unload; to exonerate”), see -ate (verb-forming suffix). Exonerō is from ex- (“out, from”) + onerō (“to burden, lade; to load”) further from onus (oner-) (“a burden, load”) + -ō (first conjugation verb-forming suffix), from Proto-Indo-European *h₃énh₂os (“burden, load”), from *h₃enh₂- (“to charge, onerate”). Compare French exonérer.

Etymology 2

Learned borrowing from Latin exonerātus (more at etymology 1), see -ate (adjective-forming suffix).

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.