alibi

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al·i·bi

(ăl′ə-bī′)

n. pl. al·i·bis

1. Law

a. A form of defense whereby a defendant attempts to prove that he or she was elsewhere when the crime in question was committed.

b. The fact of having been elsewhere when a crime in question was committed.

2. An explanation offered to avoid blame or justify action; an excuse.

v. al·i·bied, al·i·bi·ing, al·i·bis

v.intr.

To make an excuse for oneself.

v.tr.

To make an excuse for (another).

[Latin, elsewhere, from alius, other (on the model of ibi, there); see al- in Indo-European roots.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

alibi

(ˈælɪˌbaɪ)

n, pl -bis

1. (Law) law

a. a defence by an accused person that he was elsewhere at the time the crime in question was committed

b. the evidence given to prove this

2. informal an excuse

(tr) to provide with an alibi

[C18: from Latin alibī elsewhere, from alius other + -bī as in ubī where]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

al•i•bi

(ˈæl əˌbaɪ)

n., pl. -bis, n.

1. Law. the defense by an accused person of having been elsewhere when an offense was committed.

2. an excuse, esp. to avoid blame.

3. a person used as one's excuse.

v.i.

4. to give an excuse; offer a defense.

v.t.

a. to provide an alibi for (someone).

b. to make or find (one's way) by using alibis.

[1720–30; < Latin: in or at another place]

usage: The earliest English uses of alibi are in legal contexts, both as an adverb (directly from Latin) meaning “in or at another place” and as a noun meaning “a plea of having been elsewhere.” The extended noun senses “excuse” and “person used as an excuse” developed in the 20th century in the U.S. and occur in all but the most formal writing. As a verb alibi occurs mainly in informal use.

alibi

Past participle: alibied
Gerund: alibiing

Imperative
alibi
alibi

Present
I alibi
you alibi
he/she/it alibis
we alibi
you alibi
they alibi

Preterite
I alibied
you alibied
he/she/it alibied
we alibied
you alibied
they alibied

Present Continuous
I am alibiing
you are alibiing
he/she/it is alibiing
we are alibiing
you are alibiing
they are alibiing

Present Perfect
I have alibied
you have alibied
he/she/it has alibied
we have alibied
you have alibied
they have alibied

Past Continuous
I was alibiing
you were alibiing
he/she/it was alibiing
we were alibiing
you were alibiing
they were alibiing

Past Perfect
I had alibied
you had alibied
he/she/it had alibied
we had alibied
you had alibied
they had alibied

Future
I will alibi
you will alibi
he/she/it will alibi
we will alibi
you will alibi
they will alibi

Future Perfect
I will have alibied
you will have alibied
he/she/it will have alibied
we will have alibied
you will have alibied
they will have alibied

Future Continuous
I will be alibiing
you will be alibiing
he/she/it will be alibiing
we will be alibiing
you will be alibiing
they will be alibiing

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been alibiing
you have been alibiing
he/she/it has been alibiing
we have been alibiing
you have been alibiing
they have been alibiing

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been alibiing
you will have been alibiing
he/she/it will have been alibiing
we will have been alibiing
you will have been alibiing
they will have been alibiing

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been alibiing
you had been alibiing
he/she/it had been alibiing
we had been alibiing
you had been alibiing
they had been alibiing

Conditional
I would alibi
you would alibi
he/she/it would alibi
we would alibi
you would alibi
they would alibi

Past Conditional
I would have alibied
you would have alibied
he/she/it would have alibied
we would have alibied
you would have alibied
they would have alibied

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	alibi - (law) a defense by an accused person purporting to show that he or she could not have committed the crime in question vindication, defense, defence - the justification for some act or belief; "he offered a persuasive defense of the theory" law, jurisprudence - the collection of rules imposed by authority; "civilization presupposes respect for the law"; "the great problem for jurisprudence to allow freedom while enforcing order"
	2.	alibi - 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" exculpation, excuse, self-justification vindication, defense, defence - the justification for some act or belief; "he offered a persuasive defense of the theory" extenuation, mitigation - a partial excuse to mitigate censure; an attempt to represent an offense as less serious than it appears by showing mitigating circumstances
Verb	1.	alibi - exonerate by means of an alibi excuse, explain - 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"

alibi

noun excuse, reason, defence, explanation, plea, justification, pretext He had a good alibi for his absence.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

Translations

إثْبَات الغَيْبَه، عُذْردَفْعٌ بِالغَيْبَة

alibi

alibi

alibi

fjarvistarsönnun

alibi scusa

アリバイ

알리바이

alibi

alibi

álibi

алиби

alibi

พยานอ้างอิงที่อยู่

mazeretsavunma kanıtı

chứng cớ ngoại phạm

不在犯罪现场不在犯罪现场的事实或辩解托辞

alibi

[ˈælɪbaɪ]

A. N (in relation to crime) → coartada f (= excuse) → excusa f, pretexto m

B. VT to alibi sb (US) → proveer de una coartada a algn

C. VI (US) → buscar excusas (for doing sth por haber hecho algo)

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

alibi

[ˈælɪbaɪ] n (for crime) → alibi m
to have an alibi → avoir un alibi
an alibi for sth → un alibi pour qch
a false alibi → un faux alibi

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

alibi

n → Alibi nt

vt → ein Alibi liefern für

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

alibi

[ˈælɪbaɪ] n → alibi m inv

alibi

(ˈӕlibai) noun

the fact or a statement that a person accused of a crime was somewhere else when it was committed. Has he an alibi for the night of the murder?

alibi

→ دَفْعٌ بِالغَيْبَة alibi alibi Alibi άλλοθι coartada alibi alibi alibi alibi アリバイ 알리바이 alibi alibi alibi álibi алиби alibi พยานอ้างอิงที่อยู่ mazeret chứng cớ ngoại phạm 不在犯罪现场

References in classic literature ?

"The fact of Desertion I will not dispute; But its guilt, as I trust, is removed(So far as related to the costs of this suit) By the Alibi which has been proved.

View in context

He consequently sprang up again, re-entered the office, with a turn of his finger set the clock right again, that it might not be perceived the next day that it had been put wrong, and certain from that time that he had a witness to prove his alibi, he ran downstairs and soon found himself in the street.

View in context

21, who happened to be on the step at the time), to prove a complete ALIBI, it would have gone hard with him.

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Beauly may have been cunning enough to forestall suspicion, and to set up an Alibi."

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The prosecution was spiritless and perfunctory; the defense easily established--with regard to the deceased--an alibi. If during the time in which John May must have killed Charles May, if he killed him at all, Charles May was miles away from where John May must have been, it is plain that the deceased must have come to his death at the hands of someone else.

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But if, as you suppose, the murderer was in The Yellow Room for five, or even six hours, and the crime was not committed until towards midnight, the purchase of this cane proves an incontestable alibi for Darzac."

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He prepares no defence--no shadow of an alibi, yet he knows the chemist's assistant must necessarily come forward with the facts.

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After a pause he added: "There's somebody else I should like to find, before we go after a fellow with an alibi in the Inner Temple.

View in context

Our readers will remember that the deceased gentleman was found stabbed in his room, and that some suspicion attached to his valet, but that the case broke down on an ALIBI. Yesterday a lady, who has been known as Mme.

View in context

He remembered no mention of the weaver between them since the time, twelve years ago, when it was their boyish sport to deride him; and, besides, his imagination constantly created an alibi for Dunstan: he saw him continually in some congenial haunt, to which he had walked off on leaving Wildfire--saw him sponging on chance acquaintances, and meditating a return home to the old amusement of tormenting his elder brother.

View in context

He was able to prove an alibi which could not be shaken.

View in context

It is for me to establish an alibi. I go to the drawing-room, where I remain.

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