exception

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. The act of excepting or the condition of being excepted; exclusion.
2. n. One that is excepted, especially a case that does not conform to a rule or generalization.
3. n. An objection or a criticism: opinions that are open to exception.
4. n. Law A formal objection taken in the course of an action or a proceeding.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. The act of excepting or leaving out of count; exclusion, or the act of excluding from some number designated, or from a statement or description: as, all voted for the measure with the exception of five.
2. n. That which is excepted, excluded, or separated from others in a general statement or description; the person or thing specified as distinct or not included: as, almost every general rule has its exceptions.
3. n. An objection; that which is or may be offered in opposition to a rule, proposition, statement, or allegation: with to, sometimes with against.
4. n. Objection with dislike; offense; slight anger or resentment: with at or against, but more commonly with to, and generally used with take: as, to take exception at a severe remark; to take exception to what was said.
5. n. In law: In conveyancing, a clause in a deed taking out something from that which appears to be granted by the preceding part of the deed, by which means it is severed from the estate granted, and does not pass.
6. n. The thing or part of the premises thus withheld.
7. n. In equity practice, an allegation, required to be in writing, pointing out the particular matter in an adversary's pleading which is objected to as insufficient or improper.
8. n. In common-law practice, the specific statement, required to be in writing or noted on the record, of an objection taken by a party to a ruling or decision by the court or a referee, the object being to show to the higher court to which the matter may be appealed that the ruling was adhered to and carried into effect against explicit objection, or to inform the adverse party of the precise point of the objection, or both. See bill of exceptions, below. In the Roman law exceptio was a plea similar to our confession and avoidance. Thus, such a plea would be a claim to offset a debt. In a narrower sense, however, it was restricted to the plea that an action competent in law should be excluded on the ground of equity. Such a plea was held to be dangerous, because, the facts alleged by way of exception being once disproved, the claim of the plaintiff was held to be proved as good in law by the pleading of the exceptio. Hence, probably, the maxim “The exception proves the rule” (Latin exceptio probat regulam, 11 Coke 41; French l'exception prouve la règle), which is certainly of legal origin. The words “in cases not excepted” (Latin in casibus non exceptis) are, however, commonly added; and the maxim is taken to mean that an express exception implies that the general rule is the opposite of the case mentioned.

Wiktionary

1. n. The act of excepting or excluding; exclusion; restriction by taking out something which would otherwise be included, as in a class, statement, rule.
2. n. That which is excepted or taken out from others; a person, thing, or case, specified as distinct, or not included; as, almost every general rule has its exceptions.
3. n. law An objection, on legal grounds; also, as in conveyancing, a clause by which the grantor excepts or reserves something before the right is transferred.
4. n. An objection; cavil; dissent; disapprobation; offense; cause of offense; — usually followed by to or against.
5. n. computing An interruption in normal processing, especially as caused by an error condition.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. The act of excepting or excluding; exclusion; restriction by taking out something which would otherwise be included, as in a class, statement, rule.
2. n. That which is excepted or taken out from others; a person, thing, or case, specified as distinct, or not included.
3. n. (Law) An objection, oral or written, taken, in the course of an action, as to bail or security; or as to the decision of a judge, in the course of a trail, or in his charge to a jury; or as to lapse of time, or scandal, impertinence, or insufficiency in a pleading; also, as in conveyancing, a clause by which the grantor excepts something before granted.
4. n. An objection; cavil; dissent; disapprobation; offense; cause of offense; -- usually followed by to or against.

WordNet 3.0

1. n. an instance that does not conform to a rule or generalization
2. n. grounds for adverse criticism
3. n. a deliberate act of omission