condone

Word family

• condonation
  nounC2

Synonym discussion

Sense: verb/1

These words all describe a weak response to something bad, but they are not the same. 'Condone' is the strongest moral word. It suggests that someone treats clearly wrong behaviour as acceptable, often by failing to stop it. 'Tolerate' is broader and can describe putting up with something annoying without approving of it. 'Excuse' often means giving reasons for the behaviour, as if it should be forgiven. 'Overlook' usually suggests noticing the problem but choosing not to act on it. A manager might tolerate noise, excuse a late arrival, overlook a small mistake, but should never condone fraud or abuse.

Common collocations

Etymology

'Condone' came into English from the Latin verb 'condonare', which meant 'to forgive' or 'to cancel a debt or offence'. In English, it developed the modern sense of treating bad behaviour as something that will be allowed or passed over instead of strongly criticized.