ALIBI
What does "ALIBI" mean?
Evidence that an accused person was elsewhere when a crime occurred.
Meanings
- A defense that one was in another place at the time of an alleged act. Three witnesses gave him a solid alibi for the night of the robbery.
- An excuse offered to avoid blame or justify a failure. He always has an alibi for missing deadlines. informal
Did you know?
- 'Alibi' is just the Latin word for 'elsewhere' - it shares the root 'alius' (other) with 'alien', 'alias', and 'alternate'.
Word origin
From Latin 'alibi' meaning 'in another place' or 'elsewhere', from 'alius' (other); it entered English as a legal term in the eighteenth century.
Remember it
ALIBI: 'A Liar's Innocent-Bystander Insurance' - and the 'ali' root means 'other', as in another place.
A little poem
I was elsewhere - the clock, the cab, the bar agree.
Truth needs no alibi; only the guilty keep receipts.
couplet
Wordplay
- My alibi is airtight: I was elsewhere. Which, in Latin, is just me saying the word 'alibi' very slowly.
What it teaches
An alibi proves where the body was, never where the heart was; presence and innocence are not the same address.
Quick facts
What does ALIBI mean?
Evidence that an accused person was elsewhere when a crime occurred.
Is ALIBI a valid word?
Yes — ALIBI is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is ALIBI?
ALIBI has 5 letters and 3 syllables.
Where does ALIBI come from?
From Latin 'alibi' meaning 'in another place' or 'elsewhere', from 'alius' (other); it entered English as a legal term in the eighteenth century.
What can ALIBI teach us?
An alibi proves where the body was, never where the heart was; presence and innocence are not the same address.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.