Venial Sin (Noun)
Meaning
A pardonable sin regarded as entailing only a partial loss of grace.
Classification
Nouns denoting acts or actions.
Examples
- Many Catholics view lying to spare someone's feelings as a venial sin that requires minor penance for forgiveness.
- He struggled with what he saw as his venial sin of eating meat on Fridays during Lent, and sought to atone through extra prayers.
- While telling a white lie was considered a venial sin by some, it still made her uncomfortable to have done so.
- His failure to give money to the beggar was a venial sin he regretted as he continued down the street.
- A small indulgence like enjoying an extra cookie was, in her view, merely a venial sin, one she was happy to forgive herself for.