atone

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

AFP journalists saw devotees deliberately puncturing their skin with glass shards attached to a small wooden paddle to ensure their bleeding during the ritual, a way to atone for sins and seek miracles from God.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

Having suppressed its military for years in an attempt to atone for the horrors it perpetrated, can Germany fulfil its newfound ambition to become Europe's preeminent military power?

From BBC • Mar. 27, 2026

“I write to atone by telling the full truth so that the United States can protect itself from the dangers I witnessed for so many years,” Carvajal wrote.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 25, 2026

Crowe’s Dec. 6, 1973, cover story on the Allman Brothers was meant to atone for an earlier profile on the band written for the magazine by Grover Lewis, a brutally honest and often unsavory portrait.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 27, 2025

Yet he knew of no way to atone for his guilt; he felt he had to act as he was acting.

From "Native Son" by Richard Wright