Apologise Meaning
/əˈpɒləˌd͡ʒaɪz/Definition, CEFR level B1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
verbNon-Oxford British English standard spelling of apologize.
Sentence Examples
If you're going to apologise, sooner is better.
Don’t apologise, I understand perfectly.
CEFR Practice Quiz
I must ____ for arriving late to your wedding ceremony.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
You should ____ to your sister for breaking her favorite wooden toy.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree English apology English -ise English apologise From apology + -ise.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The Rector sconced him in the buttery-book, but Webberly “wiped it off, with irreverent and unbeseeming language.” For this, he had to apologise, and go without his commons for three months."
— 1898, Rev. A. Clark, University of Oxford, College Histories: Lincoln, page 73:
"At the other extreme, couples who are married with children have heavily disguised tiffs. A man saying in a slightly strained way, 'I'm going to turn the compost', is actually saying, 'And that's all you are, Jean, compost!' Of course, what happens is eventually he apologises, they cry, make love, have another child, get overtired and the tiffing continues."
— 2000 September 30, Guy Browning, “How to... have a tiff”, in The Guardian:
"John Mayer has apologised for using a racist epithet in a recent interview with Playboy magazine, after a number of prominent black musicians aired their disapproval."
— 2010 February 11, Rosie Swash, “John Mayer apologises after using N-word in Playboy interview”, in The Guardian:
"This makes him a rare bird, for most Democrats running for re-election are staying mum or apologising for their votes for reform."
— 2010 October 14, “Coming back to bite him”, in The Economist:
Explore More B1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
I must ____ for arriving late to your wedding ceremony.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
You should ____ to your sister for breaking her favorite wooden toy.