The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Pardon \Par"don\ (p[aum]r"d'n), n. [F., fr. pardonner to pardon.
   See Pardon, v. t.]
   1. The act of pardoning; forgiveness, as of an offender, or
      of an offense; release from penalty; remission of
      punishment; absolution.
      [1913 Webster]

            Pardon, my lord, for me and for my tidings. --Shak.
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            But infinite in pardon was my judge.  --Milton.
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   Usage: Used in expressing courteous denial or contradiction;
          as, I beg your pardon; or in indicating that one has
          not understood another; as, I beg pardon; or pardon
          me?.
          [1913 Webster +PJC]

   2. An official warrant of remission of penalty.
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            Sign me a present pardon for my brother. --Shak.
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   3. The state of being forgiven. --South.
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   4. (Law) A release, by a sovereign, or officer having
      jurisdiction, from the penalties of an offense, being
      distinguished from amnesty, which is a general
      obliteration and canceling of a particular line of past
      offenses.
      [1913 Webster]

   Syn: Forgiveness; remission. See Forgiveness.
        [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Pardon \Par"don\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Pardoned (p[aum]r"d'nd);
   p. pr. & vb. n. Pardoning.] [Either fr. pardon, n., or from
   F. pardonner, LL. perdonare; L. per through, thoroughly,
   perfectly + donare to give, to present. See Par-, and
   Donation.]
   1. To absolve from the consequences of a fault or the
      punishment of crime; to free from penalty; -- applied to
      the offender.
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            In this thing the Lord pardon thy servant. --2 Kings
                                                  v. 18.
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            I pray you, pardon me; pray heartily, pardon me.
                                                  --Shak.
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   2. To remit the penalty of; to suffer to pass without
      punishment; to forgive; -- applied to offenses.
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            I pray thee, pardon my sin.           --1 Sam. xv.
                                                  25.
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            Apollo, pardon
            My great profaneness 'gainst thine oracle! --Shak.
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   3. To refrain from exacting as a penalty.
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            I pardon thee thy life before thou ask it. --Shak.
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   4. To give leave (of departure) to. [Obs.]
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            Even now about it! I will pardon you. --Shak.
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   Pardon me, forgive me; excuse me; -- a phrase used also to
      express courteous denial or contradiction, or to request
      forgiveness for a mild transgression, such as bumping a
      person while passing.
      [1913 Webster +PJC]

   Syn: To forgive; absolve; excuse; overlook; remit; acquit.
        See Excuse.
        [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

pardon
    n 1: the act of excusing a mistake or offense [syn:
         forgiveness, pardon]
    2: a warrant granting release from punishment for an offense
       [syn: pardon, amnesty]
    3: the formal act of liberating someone [syn: amnesty,
       pardon, free pardon]
    v 1: accept an excuse for; "Please excuse my dirty hands" [syn:
         excuse, pardon]
    2: grant a pardon to; "Ford pardoned Nixon"; "The Thanksgiving
       turkey was pardoned by the President"

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

110 Moby Thesaurus words for "pardon":
   absolution, absolve, accept, acquit, acquittal, acquittance, allow,
   allowance, amnesty, benevolence, clear, clearance, clearing,
   clemency, commiseration, compassion, compurgation, condolence,
   condonation, condone, decontaminate, destigmatization,
   destigmatize, destigmatizing, discharge, disculpation, dismiss,
   dismissal, dispense from, exculpate, exculpation, excusal, excuse,
   exempt, exempt from, exemption, exonerate, exoneration, favor,
   feeling, forbear, forbearance, forgive, forgiveness, forgiving,
   free, give absolution, give quarter, grace, grant amnesty to,
   grant forgiveness, grant immunity, grant remission,
   have mercy upon, have pity, humanity, immunity, indemnification,
   indemnity, indulge, indulgence, justification, justify, kindness,
   leniency, let go, let off, let up on, liberate, melt, mercy,
   mitigation, nonpros, overlook, overlooking, pathos, pity,
   purgation, purge, purging, quarter, quash the charge, quietus,
   quittance, redemption, relax, release, relent, relief, remission,
   remission of sin, remit, reprieve, ruth, self-pity, set free,
   shrift, shrive, small-town, spare, sparing, sympathy, take pity on,
   thaw, tolerate, verdict of acquittal, vindicate, vindication,
   whitewash, withdraw the charge



Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary:

Pardon
   the forgiveness of sins granted freely (Isa. 43:25), readily
   (Neh. 9:17; Ps. 86:5), abundantly (Isa. 55:7; Rom. 5:20). Pardon
   is an act of a sovereign, in pure sovereignty, granting simply a
   remission of the penalty due to sin, but securing neither honour
   nor reward to the pardoned. Justification (q.v.), on the other
   hand, is the act of a judge, and not of a sovereign, and
   includes pardon and, at the same time, a title to all the
   rewards and blessings promised in the covenant of life.


Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856):

PARDON, crim. law, pleading. A pardon is an act of grace, proceeding from
the power entrusted with the execution of the laws, which exempts the
individual on whom it is bestowed, from the punishment the law inflicts for
a crime he has committed. 7 Pet. S. C. Rep. 160.
     2. Every pardon granted to the guilty is in derogation of the law; if
the pardon be equitable, the law is, bad; for where legislation and the
administration of the law are perfect, pardons must be a violation of the
law, But as human actions are necessarily imperfect, the pardoning power
must be vested somewhere in order to prevent injustice, when it is
ascertained that an error has been committed.
     3. The subject will be considered with regard, 1. To the kinds of
pardons. 2. By whom they are to be granted. 3. For what offences. 4. How to
be taken advantage of 5. Their effect.
     4.-Sec. 1, Pardons are general or special. 1. The former are express,
when an act of the legislature is passed expressly directing that offences
of a certain class; shall be pardoned, as in the case of an act of amnesty.
See Amnesty. A general pardon is implied by the repeal of a penal statute,
because, unless otherwise provided by law, an offence against such statute
while it was in force cannot be punished, and the offender goes free. 2
Overt. 423. 2. Special pardons are those which are granted by the pardoning
power for particular cases.
     5. Pardons are also divided into absolute and conditional. The former
are those which free the criminal without any condition whatever; the.
fatter are those to which a condition is annexed, which must be performed
before the pardon can have any effect. Bac. Ab. Pardon, E; 2 Caines, R. 57;
1 Bailey, 283; 2 Bailey 516. But see 4 Call, R. 85.
     6.-Sec. 2. The constitution of the United States gives to the,
president in general terms, "the power to grant reprieves and pardons for
offences against the United States." The same power is given generally to
the governors of the several states to grant pardons for crimes committed
against their respective states, but in some of them the consent of the
legislature or one of its branches is required.
     7.-Sec. 3. Except in the case of impeachment, for which a pardon
cannot be granted, the pardoning power may grant a pardon of all offences
against the government, and for any sentence or judgment. But such a pardon
does not operate to discharge the interest which third persons may have
acquired in the judgment; as, where a penalty was incurred in violation of
the embargo laws, and the custom house officers became entitled to one-half
of the penalty, the pardon did not discharge that. 4 Wash. C.C.R. 64. See 2
Bay, 565; 2 Whart. 440; 7 J. J. Marsh. 131.
     8.-Sec. 4. When the pardon is general, either by an act of amnesty,
or by the repeal of a penal law, it is not necessary to plead it, because
the court is bound, ex officio, to take notice of it. And the criminal
cannot even waive such pardon, because by his admittance, no one can give
the court power to punish him, when it judicially appears there is no law to
do it. But when the pardon is special, to avail the criminal it must
judicially appear that it has been accepted, and for this reason it must be
specially pleaded. 7 Pet. R. 150, 162.
     9.-Sec. 5. The effect of a pardon is to protect from punishment the
criminal for the offence pardoned, but for no other. 1 Porter, 475. It seems
that the pardon of an assault and battery, which afterwards becomes murder
by the death of the person beaten, would not operate as a pardon of the
murder. 12 Pick. 496. In general, the effect of a full pardon is to restore
the convict to all his rights. But to this there are some exceptions: 1st.
When the criminal has been guilty of perjury, a pardon will not qualify him
to be a witness at any time afterwards. 2d. When one was convicted of an
offence by which he became civilly dead, a pardon did not affect or annul
the second marriage of his wife, nor the sale of his property by persons
appointed to administer on his estate, nor divest his heirs of the interest
acquired in his estate in consequence of his civil death. 10 Johns. R. 232,
483.
    10.-Sec. 6. All contracts, made for the buying or procuring a pardon
for a convict, are void. And such contracts will be declared null by a court
of equity, on the ground that they are opposed to public policy. 4 Bouv.
Inst. n. 3857. Vide, generally, Bac. Ab. h.t.; Com. Dig. h.t.; Nels. Ab.
h.t.; Vin. Ab. h.t.; 13 Petersd. Ab. h.t.; Dane's Ab. h.t.; 3 lust. 233
to 240; Hawk. b. 2, c. 37; 1 Chit. Cr. L. 762 to 778; 2 Russ. on Cr. 595
Arch. Cr. Pl. 92; Stark. Cr. Pl. 368, 380.



The Devil's Dictionary (1881-1906):

PARDON, v.  To remit a penalty and restore to the life of crime.  To
add to the lure of crime the temptation of ingratitude.