Apology

How to spell apology

7 letters · 4 syllables

How to pronounce apology

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does apology mean?

1. nounA statement expressing regret for a fault, failure, or offence.

Apology in a sentence

• The manager issued a written apology for the delayed refund.

• He offered a sincere apology after missing the meeting.

Where does apology come from?

Language of origin: Greek

The word comes from the Greek apologia, which literally meant 'a speech in one's own defence', built from apo, meaning 'away from' or 'in return', and logos, meaning 'speech' or 'word'. In its earliest use it described a formal verbal defence against an accusation, as when Socrates defended himself at his trial, a text still known today as the Apology. The word travelled through Latin as apologia and into English in the early 1500s by way of French, at first keeping that strict sense of a reasoned justification of one's beliefs or conduct. Over the following centuries the meaning softened: from defending oneself it shifted to admitting fault and expressing regret, which is the everyday sense now. The older, defensive meaning survives in 'apologetics', the branch of theology that argues a case rather than says sorry. The single 'l' and the unstressed second 'o' (the schwa in a-POL-o-gy) are the spots that trip writers up.

How the word is built

• apo- (from Greek apo: away, off)
• log (from logos: speech, word)
• -y (noun suffix)