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.

Islamic fasting is oriented toward submission to divine will, while Christian penance is animated by gratitude for the incarnate God who suffered, died and rose again for the salvation of humanity.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

A breakfast that feels more like penance than possibility.

From Salon • Mar. 17, 2026

Williams’ Anna absorbs his fury as though it were the penance she herself would mete out for her sins.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 15, 2025

Mr Sloan said he later built the cathedral at Inch Abbey as "an act of penance" and made that into a Cistercian monastery.

From BBC • Apr. 20, 2025

Preemptive penance and absolution were doctrines researched and developed by the Consistorial Court, but not known to the wider Church.

From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman