Sentence examples similar to a contrived excuse from inspiring English sources

At its worse, it's a morally and narratively contrived excuse to watch a very entitled Everyman navigate a world of rich but unhappy women, including his own wife and daughter.

"Our Santa has variously been on a diet or is lactose-intolerant," said a lawyer friend who has contrived excuses on more than one occasion to explain to her daughter why the cookies and milk that her daughter had left out for Santa on Christmas Eve remained untouched the next morning.

Their contrived excuses for voting against a modest gun safety proposal were nothing more than pandering to the gun lobby.

It was the type of day when hordes of businessmen contrived excuses to play hooky.

And how was a bomb ever set in the navy yard.As usual, Mr. Hitchcock and his writers have contrived excuses.

This has been done in vain, as the revolting youth refuse to be distracted by the old empty slogans and contrived excuses of those in power that suggest that chaos will dominate in their absence should they be ousted from power.

Now I spend my days commiserating with college friends who understand the gravity of the situation, complaining to other friends who don't and, most importantly, contriving excuses to go back to Boston.

It's not a contrived thing.

A contrived, dramatically unsatisfying rouse!

Was it all a contrived act?

Being duped by conspicuous consumption: Fashion is a contrived epidemic.