| EXCUSE | "The dog ate my homework" or "My phone was turned off," e.g. |
| MARCELLOMASTROIANNI | Rome's Trevi Fountain was turned off and draped in black after the death of this actor in 1996 |
| RICE | Eric was turned off the cereal |
| SWAMI | Teacher was turned off by regular bits of email (5) |
| LIES | "The check is in the mail" and "The dog ate my homework," famously |
| ALIBIS | "The dog ate my homework" and the like |
| ILOSTIT | Excuse that is on a par with "The dog ate my homework!" |
| LIE | "The dog ate my homework" is a classic one |
| LIAR | Type who might say "The dog ate my homework" |
| ALIBI | "The dog ate my homework" |
| POOREXCUSE | "The dog ate my homework," for one |
| LAME | Like "The dog ate my homework" |
| WHITELIE | "The dog ate my homework," e.g. |
| SORRYEXQSE | "The dog ate my homework," e.g. |
| LIED | Said, "The dog ate my homework," probably |
| FIB | "The dog ate my homework," e.g. |
| LAMEEXCUSE | 'The dog ate my homework,' e.g. |
| DEADLINE | The phone was out of order at the closing date (8) |
| PREPARATION | Act of getting ready; homework or other preliminary study; or, a food, lotion, mixture, potion, remedy or other made-up concoction (11) |
| RECALLED | Remembered phone was in the grass (8) |
