exonerate
verb
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Where does exonerate come from?
Exonerate comes from the Latin verb exonerare, meaning "to unburden." That verb combines the prefix ex- with onus, meaning "load" or "burden." In its earliest uses, exonerate was applied to physical burdens—a ship, for example, could be exonerated of its cargo when it was unloaded. Later it was used in reference to the freeing of any kind of burden, including blame or charges of wrongdoing.
Examples of exonerate in a Sentence
Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2024
But research has exposed serious flaws in these determinations, and dozens of other defendants who have been wrongly convicted under this theory have been exonerated.
—Jeff Kukucka, Scientific American, 26 Oct. 2024
They were exonerated in 2002 when DNA evidence linked another person to the crime.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 21 Oct. 2024
At least 200 people – including 18 in Texas – have been exonerated since 1973 after being convicted and sentenced to die, according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
—Dakin Andone, CNN, 17 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for exonerate 
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Cite this Entry
“Exonerate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/exonerate. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
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exonerate
verb
Legal Definition
exonerate
transitive verb
Latin exonerare to relieve, free, discharge, from ex- out + onerare to burden, from oner-, onus load
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