penance
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.
There are the shamefaced former members, who confess their gullibility as a kind of penance; there are the cockamamie claims on which the belief system is based.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 28, 2026
“I write to make amends,” she reflects, describing a lifetime of studying Cuba as a kind of penance for what she calls being “the chosen one” that spring day in 1963.
From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026
As if doing penance for the past, all four of the film’s stars are associated with superhero franchises.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 12, 2026
Concluding that Didion left these pages behind so they would eventually take shape as the penance of an unreliable narrator is surely too tidy.
From Salon • Jun. 14, 2025
Cadence displayed a disquieting desire to rid herself of all unnecessary possessions, even things of sentimental value, almost as if doing penance for past crimes.
From "We Were Liars" by E. Lockhart
Vocabulary lists containing penance
Fahrenheit 451
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The Poet X
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The Joy Luck Club
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