expiation

noun

Definition of expiationnext
as in atonement

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of expiation Then, expiation in the 80th minute. — Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 12 May 2026 Post-Homeric legends relate that after returning to Ithaca Odysseus traveled to northern Greece to appease Poseidon, having descended to the underworld in the Odyssey to consult the seer Tiresias on the manner of expiation. — Gitanjali Roy, Encyclopedia Britannica, 12 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for expiation
Recent Examples of Synonyms for expiation
  1. atonement
  2. reparation
  3. absolution
  4. forgiveness
  5. pardon
  6. remission
Noun
  • For starters, there is one urgent mission the pope must take on the road to atonement.
    — Laura Washington, Mercury News, 9 June 2026
  • But his atonement comes too late.
    — Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 1 June 2026
Definition of atonement
Noun
  • Alameda County supervisors voted Tuesday to create a permanent reparations committee for Black residents, moving a sweeping set of recommendations from study to the harder question of implementation.
    — Chase Hunter, Mercury News, 1 July 2026
  • This vessel has a controversial past, built by Nazi Germany in 1935 as SSS *Horst Wessel*, named after a Nazi martyr, before being taken as war reparations by the US.
    — Peter Suciu, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
Definition of reparation
Noun
  • That's different than an insanity defense, which usually seeks total absolution, Schoenstein said.
    — Mark Prussin, CBS News, 18 June 2026
  • The point is not that the offender deserves absolution.
    — The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 June 2026
Definition of absolution
Noun
  • As well as realization that everyone deserves love, empathy, and forgiveness.
    — Tabitha Parent, PEOPLE, 3 July 2026
  • Mengel wrote the script for the cinematic exploration of family, love, forgiveness and mental health with his friend and creative partner Christian Bengtson.
    — Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 2 July 2026
Definition of forgiveness
Noun
  • The school construction scandal should not end in a presidential pardon.
    — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 27 June 2026
  • Maxwell's former attorney, David Markus, told reporters last summer that Maxwell had not requested a pardon, but would welcome any relief.
    — James Hill, ABC News, 24 June 2026
Definition of pardon
Noun
  • In clinical trials, roughly 78% of patients reached remission and more than 80% were still in remission a full year later.
    — Angelica Stabile, FOXNews.com, 2 July 2026
  • Abivax added that more than a third of patients who didn't respond to the treatment initially achieved remission after about 10 months.
    — Fred Imbert, CNBC, 1 July 2026
Definition of remission

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expiating
expiation
expiations
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Cite this Entry

“Expiation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/expiation. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on expiation

Nglish: Translation of expiation for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about expiation

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