absolve

Absolve is a verb meaning to declare someone free from guilt, blame, or obligation, or to release them from punishment or responsibility. It can refer to situations where a person is cleared of criminal or civil charges, as well as to the forgiveness of sins in religious contexts. In general use, to absolve someone from an obligation means to relieve them of that duty.

Etymology: The word comes from Latin absolvere “to loosen from,” via Old French absolve, entering English in the late Middle Ages. The related noun absolution denotes the act or state of being absolved, while absolved is the past participle describing someone who has been freed.

Contexts and nuances: In legal language, absolving someone of charges or liability is common, though terms like acquit or exonerate are frequently preferred in formal writing. In religious settings, absolution refers to the forgiveness of sins pronounced by a priest or church authority, typically after confession. The phrase can also appear in secular moral discourse, as in “absolve oneself of guilt” or “absolve someone of obligations,” where it implies release from moral or practical responsibility.

Related terms include absolution (the noun), exonerate, forgive, and release. Absolve contrasts with condemn or punish in that it terminates liability or guilt rather than maintaining it.