excuse
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excuse
A reason given for misbehavior or a failure to do something, often not the true cause and only serving as justification.
Er kam zu spät und hatte wie immer eine fantasievolle Ausrede parat.
He arrived late and, as always, had an imaginative excuse ready.
The word is made up of 'aus' (out) and 'Rede' (speech/talk). The idea behind it is that you talk your way 'out of' an unpleasant situation with a speech or explanation.
Seine Erklärung klang mehr nach einer Ausrede als nach einem echten Grund.
His explanation sounded more like an excuse than a real reason.
Common verbs used with 'Ausrede' (excuse) are 'eine Ausrede haben' (to have an excuse), 'eine Ausrede suchen' (to look for an excuse), or 'etwas als Ausrede benutzen' (to use something as an excuse).
Er sucht immer nach einer Ausrede, um nicht beim Abwasch helfen zu müssen.
He is always looking for an excuse not to have to help with the dishes.
An 'Ausrede' (excuse) almost always has a negative connotation. It implies that the reason given is not the true one and only serves to avoid responsibility.
„Ich hatte keine Zeit“ ist eine klassische Ausrede.
'I didn't have time' is a classic excuse.
reason / ground
'der Grund' and 'die Ausrede' can both be an explanation for why something happened or why someone did something. 'der Grund' is neutral: it can be true, factual, and completely acceptable. 'die Ausrede', on the other hand, sounds negative. It often means a reason that is not honest or is used only to excuse bad behavior. Learners may confuse the words because both answer the question 'Warum?' (why?). In practice: if the explanation is honest and factual, 'Grund' fits. If someone wants to talk their way out of something, 'Ausrede' fits.
Heute akzeptiert die Lehrerin keine Ausrede für die vergessenen Hausaufgaben.
Today the teacher is not accepting any excuse for the forgotten homework.
Der starke Verkehr war der Grund für meine Verspätung.
The heavy traffic was the reason for my delay.