extenuation
/ɪksˌtɛnjʊˈeɪʃən/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: 1.10 in modern English
18
Scrabble Score
11
Letters
5
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
The action of extenuating; extenuated condition.
American usage; Countable; Humorous; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "This mightily helpeth the extenuation of members."
- "A yong man…had an extenuation for want of nourishment in his Limbs."
- "Galen commends tepid Baths for…curing all Extenuations."
- "The extenuation is her only bad symptom."
- "The female…exhibited…some symptoms of extenuation."
- "Some pallid from extenuation."
Etymology
An adaptation of extenuātiōn-, the oblique stem of the Latin extenuātiō (“a thinning or diminishing”, “rarefaction”; rhetoric “a lessening”, “diminution”, “extenuation”), noun of action from extenuō (“to thin, reduce, or diminish”). Equivalent to extenuate + -ion. Compare the French exténuation.
Origin
- Source language: Latin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- British English: /ɪksˌtɛnjʊˈeɪʃən/
Usage
- Countable
- Uncountable
- Obsolete
- American usage
- Humorous