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disculpar

to excuse

verb dees-kool-PAHR Rare

Also means

to forgive

Usage Note

Disculpar means to excuse or pardon someone, and is commonly used reflexively: disculparse ('to apologise'). The polite formula disculpe (formal) or disculpa (informal) functions like 'excuse me' or 'I'm sorry'. It overlaps with perdonar, but disculpar is slightly softer and more about overlooking a fault, while perdonar can cover deeper forgiveness.

Examples

"Se disculpó por llegar tarde."

Natural Translation

He apologised for arriving late.

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