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49 Best Excuses For Not Doing Homework
- February 10, 2024
Last Updated on February 10, 2024 by Ketan
No, you can’t use ‘I’d a fever’ as the best excuse for not doing homework.
Because someone already has the same reason. And it’s too regular.
Also, blaming a dog for biting out your assignment book is totally unbelievable.
Then you may ask, what to say when the teacher asks ‘Where’s your homework?’
Well, don’t worry to help you out in such a situation, we provide you with all the fresh, believable excuses to give.
That your teacher will accept it as a valid reason for missing your assignment.
( Note: This is just for entertainment purposes. Please don’t make a habit of relying on these excuses every day. Better if you do your homework on time.)
Good Excuses For Not Doing Homework
You know you must do your exam on time.
But you didn’t get the right time or mood to actually sit and complete it.
Whether you’ve played all day, overslept, or just not doing homework anyway, you need something to say to your teacher as a valid reason.
Have these good reasons to convince your teacher why you came to school without the homework.
1. “Someone told me that the date of submission is extended.”
2. “I have done my homework, but I forget where I put my notebook.”
3. “We have surprised guest visitors and they stay the whole day.”
4. “Because I didn’t know where to start, I’m unable to complete the homework.”
5. “There’s some fixing work going on at my home, especially in my room.”
6. “I was about to do homework, but I don’t understand a thing.”
7. “There were some other priorities. More important than homework.”
8. “I have a reason, but I can’t share it with you, please believe me.”
9. “I’ve misplaced the notebooks, still unable to find them. So I couldn’t complete it.”
10. “There was a rumor that you were on leave today.”
11. “I had no time for homework because there are so many things going on at home.”
12. “My family and I were out of the city the entire day yesterday and we returned late.”
13. “After school, I have to work at our family business. My dad already trained me for it.”
14. “I forgot my bag here so I’m not able to complete it at home.”
15. “Thought I would do it late at night, but I slept quite earlier than usual.”
16. “My entire day went into doing some extracurricular, and I didn’t get time for homework.”
READ NEXT: Great Comebacks For Your Kids
Funny Reasons For Not Doing Homework
Well, some excuses are so ridiculous that they make your teacher and your fellow students laugh.
Indeed, there is a risk of you appearing dumb in front of your class.
But because it’s a hilarious and creative reason, it might still work in your favor.
Or at least to come up with new excuses than anyone else can think of.
1. “It was my birthday yesterday. And, I don’t want to celebrate it by doing just homework.”
2. “My parents brought a pet for me. So I played with him the whole day.”
3. “After I completed my homework, my sibling ripped my assignment apart.”
4. “I’ve to babysit my little brother with nobody at home to take care of us.”
5. “I was lost in the mall while going shopping with my mum and found it in the evening.”
6. “My elder sibling has thrown my assignment book in the trash.”
7. “Our cousin used my homework to make a paper plane and they just flew it.”
8. “My family wants me to go to a boarding school, so I’m just getting ready for it.”
9. “I was looking for the right time to get it done, but I didn’t get it .”
10. “My mom and dad fought and the entire day went on just to settle things down.”
11. “My grandparents visited our home yesterday, and I’ve been busy with them.”
12. “Because there is so much homework for different subjects, I can’t do any of them.”
13. “My internet went off while you’ve given the assignments to us.”
14. “I accept that I didn’t do my homework now, but I promise to complete it tomorrow.”
15. “There’s some family issue going on at home. So, I’m unable to complete the assignment.”
16. “My dad took my bag for some reason and today I have to come with a spare bag.”
17. “This is the first time I forgot the lesson, and you have to understand that I have some reason for that.”
Believable Excuses For Not Doing Homework
Whatever reason you are about to give for not completing your assignment, your teacher will judge it logically.
So you just can’t share any reason that’s on your mind.
Be careful with your reasons or excuses before saying why you didn’t do your homework.
If you want some believable reasons that your teacher can’t deny, here’s the whole list of them.
1. “I asked my dad to help me with my homework, but he doesn’t know a thing either.”
2. “I’ve saved my assignment, but I don’t know where it is now. The file is lost on the PC.”
3. “I forgot to save my homework and all the work was just gone.”
4. “There were system errors on my PC. So it was not possible to do homework.”
5. “My computer just got hacked and I must delete everything including homework.”
6. “I felt the pain in my writing hand, and now I’m feeling better.”
7. “After school, we had to go to some event and I lost my bag somewhere there.”
8. “I thought today was a holiday. So I didn’t do it.”
9. “Remember I told you that my computer is in repair, the technician hasn’t returned it.”
10. “I’ve been at an important event with my family and came back this morning.”
11. “It was my sister’s marriage, so I was not able to complete my homework.”
12. “I was stuck in the giant toy car the whole day and not able to do homework later.”
13. “We bought a new TV. So, me and my brother watched our cartoon the whole day.”
14. “I was helping other kids in school to complete assignments, but I forgot mine.”
15. “My notebook fell into our swimming pool and I couldn’t save it in time.”
16. “It’s not my dog, but my cat peed on my notebook. I couldn’t bring my notebook today, but I will tomorrow.”
READ NEXT: Smart Responses To Every ‘Why?’ Question
We all agree that we have the entire day to do it, but the best time to do homework is ‘the last hour’ before submission.
But sometimes you can’t even do your homework in that precious time, too.
Because you don’t want to do it, or just give up.
When you fail to do or submit your assignment last time, you need some good excuses for not doing homework that your teacher could believe and accept.
We hope we’ve suggested the best reasons to share to be safe this time.
But Hey, next time you do your homework properly, Right?
This list covers last-minute excuses to get you another chance.
Hope this frees you from any punishments or embarrassment at school.
But, promise us, that you will do your homework on time from now on. We don’t want you to use these excuses anymore, too.
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Specialized in marketing, with 'communication' as a favorite subject, Ketan P. is a head writer at 'Better Responses'. He loves to share his unique perspectives and ways to make everyday conversations a bit 'lively'.
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How to Make Up a Good Excuse for Your Homework Not Being Finished
Last Updated: October 31, 2024 Fact Checked
Choosing an Excuse
Delivering the excuse, potential consequences, moving forward, expert q&a.
This article was co-authored by wikiHow Staff . Our trained team of editors and researchers validate articles for accuracy and comprehensiveness. wikiHow's Content Management Team carefully monitors the work from our editorial staff to ensure that each article is backed by trusted research and meets our high quality standards. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 380,665 times. Learn more...
If you did not finish your homework, you may want to find an excuse to avoid being penalized. There are a variety of excuses, from blaming technology to your busy schedule, that sounds like a plausible reason for failing to complete an assignment. When you settle on an excuse, work on delivering the excuse in a believable fashion. However, try to be careful moving forward. You do not want to lie habitually, as this reflects poorly on you as a student. In the future, try to make sure your assignments are done on time.
- This is a great excuse if you had a paper you needed to type and print. It may also work if you have homework you had to do online. You could say you did the whole assignment, but then your internet cut out and you couldn't save anything.
- It might be a bad idea to claim your printer stopped working. Your teacher may request you e-mail him/her the assignment instead, which you won't be able to do if you never did it. Teachers may also suggest you should have printed an assignment at a local library or FedEx instead of coming in with nothing.
- If your parents are divorced, for example, you can claim you were at your mom's last night but left your textbook with your dad this weekend. Many teachers are sympathetic to children from divorced homes. Your teacher may take pity on you if you use an excuse like this. [2] X Research source
- Do you have any younger siblings? You could claim you had to babysit your little sister and she got sick, resulting in your being distracted from your homework. [3] X Research source
- You can try running around in the playground or hallways before class. This can help you look flushed and warm. If you look sick, your teacher will be more likely to believe you.
- However, keep in mind some teachers may require a note from your parents in the event of illness. If your teacher typically demands proof of sickness, you may want to avoid using this excuse.
- Avoid saying you left your homework at home. Your teacher may request you call your mom or dad to have it delivered to the school. This will reveal you are lying.
- Try not to use this excuse more than once or twice a term; otherwise, your teacher may see you as disorganized and be less sympathetic towards you if you need to make other excuses in the future.
- Be careful using this excuse if you're not busy. If you're usually late for classes and do not engage in many extracurricular activities, your teacher may catch onto the fact you're lying.
- Never lie you were absent on the day the homework was set. One glance of the register is all it takes for your teacher to see right through this excuse.
- If your teacher is particularly strict, be prepared to answer a lot of questions. A stricter teacher is likely to grill you, poking holes in your excuse. For example, say you claim you couldn't turn in your online math homework because your internet cut out. A strict teacher might respond with something like, "Then why didn't you go do your homework at a coffee shop?" Have a response ready. Try something like, "My mom was working and there was no one to drive me." [7] X Research source
- Do you know anything about your teacher's personal interests? This can help you gauge what excuse may work for this person. For example, you know your chemistry teacher is the oldest of 7 children. He may be more sympathetic to a story about how watching your younger siblings kept you from getting your work done. [8] X Research source
- Stick to only the important details. For example, say you're planning on claiming your piano recital got out late, and this is why you didn't finish your math homework. Do not go overboard with the details. Simply say, "A few students played their solos too long, so we didn't get done until 9:30 and it was a 45-minute drive home." Do not say, "Chester Mifflin spent 25 minutes on his routine when we were only given 10, and then Lisa Gregory was a little late getting up on stage..." The longer your lie, the more unbelievable it sounds. Most people would not remember this much detail.
- If your teacher presses you for specifics, you can improvise as needed but avoid excessive detail. For example, your teacher might ask, "How long did the recital run over?" Do not say, "It was supposed to run until 8:30 but it was 9:23 when we got out." Instead, say something somewhat vague, like, "I'd say about 45 minutes."
- Take a few deep breaths before going into the room to help yourself stay calm.
- Make eye contact with your teacher most of the time.
- Be conscious of what you're doing with your body. Try to avoid fidgeting excessively.
- Refer to the syllabus for that class. There may be a section about honesty that goes over the consequences of lying to a teacher.
- You should also look at your school's handbook if you have a copy. See if there are any sections about what happens if you breach academic honesty policies.
- Consequences can vary from teacher-to-teacher. In some cases, you may only get a strict talking to. However, some teachers may be required to report these kinds of behaviors to the principal and your parents. This could land you in more serious trouble both at home and at school.
- It may depend on the assignment. Late work may not be accepted, but if the assignment is only worth 10 points, is this really a big deal? However, if the assignment is worth 15% of your grade, it may be worth it to ask for an extension.
- Talk to other students who've had this teacher in the past. How has this teacher reacted to late or missing work? Some teachers may accept late work for lower points. Some teachers may allow you to turn in work late if it's your first time. If this is the case, it may be a good idea to simply admit you didn't do the assignment.
- You can make a pro and con list for each scenario. Write down the possible benefits and possible drawbacks of each option. For example, you can write on the top of a piece of paper "Lying To My Teacher" and then have two columns, one for "pro" and one for "con." Under "pro," you may write something like, "Assignment is worth a lot of points - an extension could help my overall grade." Under "con," you could write, "If Ms. Davies finds out I'm lying, she will report it to the principal and I'll get detention for a week."
- Weigh the pros and cons. If the pros outweigh the cons heavily for one option, this may be the right choice for you.
- Do your homework every day after school. Do not do anything else, like playing video games or playing outside, before finishing your work.
- Write down all the assignments you have to do. Make sure to write down an assignment after a teacher mentions it. This way, you won't forget.
- If you habitually struggle to get your homework done and have an overall inability to concentrate, this can be a symptom of Attention Deficit Disorder. Talk to your parents about getting tested for ADD.
- Keep in mind that if you make too many excuses, your grade will probably drop, or your teacher might phone home to see what's wrong. Thanks Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
Tips from our Readers
- Try to stick close to the truth, but bend it. For example, if you were too tired to do it, say that you feel overwhelmed by your workload and you passed out before you got to it.
- If you use your family as an excuse, take care not to get them in trouble, or to blame them. Your teacher will probably call home to ask questions.
- If you fake sick, you don't have to turn in your homework. Just be sure not to use this trick too many times. School is important!
You Might Also Like
- ↑ https://helpfulprofessor.com/homework-excuses/
- ↑ https://www.brighthubeducation.com/study-and-learning-tips/51072-10-best-homework-excuses/
- ↑ https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/extreme-fear/201005/top-ten-secrets-effective-liars
About This Article
While lying too often could reflect badly on you as a student, if you need a good excuse for your homework not being finished, say you lost it. Just don’t use this excuse often, since your teacher will think you’re unorganized. If the homework was on the computer, try blaming technology. Say your computer crashed or your internet was down. Alternatively, claim you were ill last night and had to rest. Only do this if you don’t think your teacher will call your parents to check or ask for a sick note. If you have a sibling that doesn’t go to your school, you can say they were ill and you had to look after them. Or, if you do a lot of things outside of school and have lots of homework to do, pretend you were too busy and ran out of time. For more tips, including how to make your excuse more convincing, read on! Did this summary help you? Yes No
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