not subject to the control of the will; "involuntary manslaughter"; "involuntary servitude"; "an involuntary shudder"; "It (becoming a hero) was involuntary. They sank my boat"- John F.Kennedy
controlled by the autonomic nervous system; without conscious control; "involuntary muscles"; "gave an involuntary start"
a note explaining an absence; "he had to get his mother to write an excuse for him"
a defense of some offensive behavior or some failure to keep a promise etc.; "he kept finding excuses to stay"; "every day he had a new alibi for not getting a job"; "his transparent self-justification was unacceptable"
excuse, overlook, or make allowances for; be lenient with; "excuse someone's behavior"; "She condoned her husband's occasional infidelities"
serve as a reason or cause or justification of; "Your need to sleep late does not excuse your late arrival at work"; "Her recent divorce may explain her reluctance to date again"
grant exemption or release to; "Please excuse me from this class"
ask for permission to be released from an engagement
accept an excuse for; "Please excuse my dirty hands"
the act of drawing spatially closer to something; "the hunter's approach scattered the geese"
a relatively short golf shot intended to put the ball onto the putting green; "he lost the hole when his approach rolled over the green"
ideas or actions intended to deal with a problem or situation; "his approach to every problem is to draw up a list of pros and cons"; "an attack on inflation"; "his plan of attack was misguided"
a close approximation; "the nearest approach to genius"
the temporal property of becoming nearer in time; "the approach of winter"
the event of one object coming closer to another
make advances to someone, usually with a proposal or suggestion; "I was approached by the President to serve as his adviser in foreign matters"
come near in time; "Winter is approaching"; "approaching old age"
move towards; "We were approaching our destination"; "They are drawing near"; "The enemy army came nearer and nearer"