Apology — meaning, pronunciation & more

Definition

an expression of regret at having caused trouble for someone

a formal written defense of something you believe in strongly

Pronunciation

🇺🇸American English

/kˈæɹɐbˌɪn/

🇬🇧British English

/ɐpˈɒlədʒi/

🇮🇳Indian English

/ɐpˈɒlədʒi/

4 syllables Say it as /kˈæɹɐbˌɪn/.

Examples

he wrote a letter of apology to the hostess
it was an apology for a meal
a poor excuse for an automobile

Synonyms & Antonyms

Synonyms

apologia excuse

Parts of Speech

noun	an expression of regret at having caused trouble for someone “he wrote a letter of apology to the hostess”
noun	a formal written defense of something you believe in strongly
noun	a poor example “it was an apology for a meal”

Word Forms

apologetic	adjective	offering or expressing apology
apologize	verb	acknowledge faults or shortcomings or failing
apologise	verb	defend, explain, clear away, or make excuses for by reasoning
apologist	noun	a person who argues to defend or justify some policy or institution

Around the World

Europe

🇩🇪German

Entschuldigung

ein Ausdruck des Bedauerns darüber, jemandem Ärger bereitet zu haben

🇫🇷French

excuses

une expression de regret d'avoir causé des ennuis à quelqu'un

🇪🇸Spanish

disculpa

una expresión de arrepentimiento por haber causado problemas a alguien

🇮🇹Italian

scuse

un'espressione di rammarico per aver causato problemi a qualcuno

🇳🇱Dutch

verontschuldiging

een uiting van spijt dat je iemand problemen hebt bezorgd

🇵🇹Portuguese

desculpa

uma expressão de arrependimento por ter causado problemas a alguém

🇷🇺Russian

извинение

выражение сожаления о том, что причинил кому-то неприятности

India

🇮🇳Hindi

क्षमायाचना

किसी के लिए परेशानी पैदा करने पर खेद की अभिव्यक्ति

🇧🇩Bengali

ক্ষমা

কারো জন্য সমস্যা সৃষ্টি করার জন্য অনুশোচনার প্রকাশ

🇮🇳Tamil

மன்னிப்பு

ஒருவருக்கு பிரச்சனையை ஏற்படுத்தியதற்காக வருத்தத்தின் வெளிப்பாடு

🇮🇳Telugu

క్షమాపణ

ఒకరికి ఇబ్బంది కలిగించినందుకు విచారం యొక్క వ్యక్తీకరణ

🇮🇳Marathi

माफी

एखाद्याला त्रास झाल्याबद्दल खेद व्यक्त करणे

🇮🇳Gujarati

માફી

કોઈને મુશ્કેલી ઊભી કરવા બદલ દિલગીરીની અભિવ્યક્તિ

🇮🇳Kannada

ಕ್ಷಮೆಯಾಚನೆ

ಯಾರಿಗಾದರೂ ತೊಂದರೆ ನೀಡಿದ್ದಕ್ಕಾಗಿ ವಿಷಾದದ ಅಭಿವ್ಯಕ್ತಿ

🇮🇳Malayalam

ക്ഷമാപണം

മറ്റൊരാൾക്ക് പ്രശ്‌നമുണ്ടാക്കിയതിൽ ഖേദപ്രകടനം

🇮🇳Punjabi

ਮੁਆਫੀ

ਕਿਸੇ ਲਈ ਮੁਸੀਬਤ ਪੈਦਾ ਕਰਨ 'ਤੇ ਅਫਸੋਸ ਦਾ ਪ੍ਰਗਟਾਵਾ

🇵🇰Urdu

معافی

کسی کے لیے پریشانی کا باعث بننے پر افسوس کا اظہار

East & Southeast Asia

🇨🇳Chinese

道歉

因给某人带来麻烦而表示遗憾的表达

🇯🇵Japanese

謝罪

誰かに迷惑をかけてしまったことに対する後悔の表現

🇰🇷Korean

사과

누군가에게 폐를 끼친 것에 대한 후회의 표현

🇻🇳Vietnamese

lời xin lỗi

một biểu hiện của sự hối tiếc vì đã gây rắc rối cho ai đó

🇹🇭Thai

ขอโทษ

การแสดงความรู้สึกเสียใจที่ได้สร้างความเดือดร้อนให้กับใครบางคน

🇮🇩Indonesian

permintaan maaf

ekspresi penyesalan karena telah menimbulkan masalah bagi seseorang

🇵🇭Filipino

paghingi ng tawad

isang pagpapahayag ng panghihinayang sa pagkakaroon ng problema para sa isang tao

🇲🇾Malay

minta maaf

ungkapan penyesalan kerana telah menimbulkan masalah kepada seseorang

Middle East

🇸🇦Arabic

اعتذار

التعبير عن الندم على التسبب في مشكلة لشخص ما

🇮🇷Persian

عذرخواهی

ابراز تاسف از ایجاد مشکل برای کسی

🇹🇷Turkish

özür

birinin başına bela açtığı için pişmanlık ifadesi

🇮🇱Hebrew

הִתנַצְלוּת

הבעת חרטה על שגרם למישהו צרות

Test Yourself1 / 3

What is the primary definition of the word 'apology'?

The primary meaning of 'apology' is 'an expression of regret at having caused trouble for someone'.

Which of the following sentences uses the word 'apology' in a grammatically correct way?

Using 'apology' in a noun/adjective form makes the first sentence correct.

In which domain is the word 'apology' most likely to appear as standard vocabulary?

'apology' is a standard word used primarily in general literature and formal communications.

Community Poll1 / 6

How often do you encounter the word 'apology' in your daily reading?

Very Often

Occasionally

Rarely

Never

Do you find 'apology' easy to spell?

Yes, very easy

Somewhat easy

A bit confusing

Extremely hard

In your opinion, does the word 'apology' have a positive, neutral, or gloomy tone?

Positive

Neutral

Gloomy

Vibrant

Which age group is most likely to use 'apology' in regular conversations?

Kids (3-12)

Teens (13-19)

Adults (20-60)

Seniors (60+)

How likely are you to use 'apology' in a professional email?

Very likely

Somewhat likely

Not very likely

Never

Would you classify 'apology' as formal, casual, or slang?

Formal

Casual

Slang

Archaic

Pick an option to see how others voted