Excuses

Examples

• There are no privileges, no rebates, and no excuses in the Kingdom of Heaven. H. G. Wells. The Outline of History_Being a Plain History of Life and Mankind.
• You will make my excuses, my dear, as civilly as possible. Jane Austen. Emma.
• I was rather disappointed that I did not hear from her again speedily; but I made excuses for her, and was too busy, andmay I add? Jane Austen. Emma.
• There is no time to be lost, he went on, now speaking in French; and let us thrust to the wall all reluctance, all excuses, all minauderies. Charlotte Bronte. Villette.
• I rose, and, making my excuses, escaped from the house. Arthur Conan Doyle. The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes.
• Hence he was not ready to frame excuses for this deliberate pursuit of small gains. George Eliot. Middlemarch.
• Make my excuses to him for not joining you both. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
• The culprit falters excuses, and professes a determination to do better tomorrow. Charles Dickens. David Copperfield.
• A thousand thanks and a thousand excuses. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
• Certainly; and if he is lazy or negligent, I will write his excuses myself. Jane Austen. Mansfield Park.
• I long to make apologies, excuses, to urge something for myself. Jane Austen. Emma.
• Rawdon muttered some excuses about an engagement, squeezing hard the timid little hand which his sister-in-law reached out to him. William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
• A more scrupulous woman than I was--a woman who had not set her heart on a gold watch and chain--would have found some excuses for him. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
• Jos succeeded in plunging into the coat, and came forward blushing and stuttering out excuses to his fair visitor. William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
• Suggestions to stop, excuses to eat and to drink, were forever on his lips. Mark Twain. The Innocents Abroad.
• Now also that our children gave us occupation, we found excuses for our idleness, in the idea of bringing them up to a more splendid career. Mary Shelley. The Last Man.
• Necessity, however, always forced him to submit at last, though frequently not till after many delays, evasions, and affected excuses. Adam Smith. An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations.
• She had never been so little inclined to make excuses for Fred. George Eliot. Middlemarch.
• The emperor of Blefuscu, having taken three days to consult, returned an answer consisting of many civilities and excuses. Jonathan Swift. Gulliver's Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World.
• It was very kind to go and make my excuses for me to people who are almost strangers to you. Wilkie Collins. The Moonstone.
• Pray make my excuses to Pratt for not keeping my engagement, and dancing with him to-night. Jane Austen. Pride and Prejudice.
• Mr Pancks wouldn't hear of excuses, wouldn't hear of complaints, wouldn't hear of repairs, wouldn't hear of anything but unconditional money down. Charles Dickens. Little Dorrit.
• You tell me that some of the ladies in your neighbourhood will take no excuses. Harriette Wilson. The Memoirs of Harriette Wilson.
• The moment he turned round to get me a chair, I seized my opportunity--thanked him--made my excuses--and slipped out. Wilkie Collins. The Woman in White.
• As a matter of justice I must warn you that we only await one of these two excuses for ridding ourselves of so great a responsibility. Edgar Rice Burroughs. A Princess of Mars.
• Pray make my excuses and adieus to her. Jane Austen. Emma.
• If they were short or selfish, what excuses she found for the writer! William Makepeace Thackeray. Vanity Fair.
• Dear Cousin, you don't know Dodo; it's the only way to manage him, he's so full of lies and excuses. Harriet Beecher Stowe. Uncle Tom's Cabin.
• It was quite needless to invent excuses for not showing him the letter. Wilkie Collins. The Moonstone.
• Whatever was wanted was hallooed for, and the servants hallooed out their excuses from the kitchen. Jane Austen. Mansfield Park.

Editor: Wallace