shuō​cí

excuse

说辞 (說辭) shuō​cí
excuse noun
a reason or pretext given to justify a fault or explain away an action

No one believes his ridiculous excuse.

arguments noun
persuasive rhetoric, entreaties, or the specific wording used in a speech or debate

His argument was very persuasive and won everyone's support.

Frequency

Movie subtitles
2.77 per million appears in 1% of films
Written text
1.07 per million

Sources

Definitions
CC-CEDICT