cardinal sin
noun
: a very bad or serious sin in Christianity
—often used figuratively or humorously
Giving false information is a cardinal sin in news reporting.
He committed the cardinal sin of criticizing his boss.
Examples of cardinal sin in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But Republicans emerged from a fraught three-and-a-half-hour meeting insisting that such a resolution could not pass without garnering Democratic votes—a cardinal sin among the party faithful.
—
Grace Segers, The New Republic, 19 Oct. 2023
Given its extraordinarily rich and long-standing reputation for quality and dependability, Volkswagen committed a cardinal sin against its own identity.
—Bernhard Rieger, Foreign Affairs, 4 Oct. 2015
The cardinal sin of much AI and algorithms today is discrimination baked into their fabric through poor data design.
—Vivek Wadhwa, Fortune, 1 Sep. 2023
Imelda’s cardinal sin was greed; this production, even more than the one at the Public, is an exercise in ecstatic excess.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 21 July 2023
May 11, 2023 See more reactions below: Airing rallies live is the cardinal sin of 2016.
—Shannon Larson, BostonGlobe.com, 11 May 2023
Pessimism reigned in meme culture, and YouTubers amassed millions of followers by mocking creators who committed the cardinal sin of being too earnest or embarrassing online.
—Taylor Lorenz, Rolling Stone, 23 Apr. 2023
Eight of their 13 turnovers were committed in the quarter, and virtually all were of the live-ball variety — a basketball cardinal sin.
—Andrew Greif, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2023
Ben Aldridge has committed a cardinal sin of the gay community.
—Nick Romano, EW.com, 2 Feb. 2023
See More
Grace Segers, The New Republic, 19 Oct. 2023
Given its extraordinarily rich and long-standing reputation for quality and dependability, Volkswagen committed a cardinal sin against its own identity.
—Bernhard Rieger, Foreign Affairs, 4 Oct. 2015
The cardinal sin of much AI and algorithms today is discrimination baked into their fabric through poor data design.
—Vivek Wadhwa, Fortune, 1 Sep. 2023
Imelda’s cardinal sin was greed; this production, even more than the one at the Public, is an exercise in ecstatic excess.
—Helen Shaw, The New Yorker, 21 July 2023
May 11, 2023 See more reactions below: Airing rallies live is the cardinal sin of 2016.
—Shannon Larson, BostonGlobe.com, 11 May 2023
Pessimism reigned in meme culture, and YouTubers amassed millions of followers by mocking creators who committed the cardinal sin of being too earnest or embarrassing online.
—Taylor Lorenz, Rolling Stone, 23 Apr. 2023
Eight of their 13 turnovers were committed in the quarter, and virtually all were of the live-ball variety — a basketball cardinal sin.
—Andrew Greif, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2023
Ben Aldridge has committed a cardinal sin of the gay community.
—Nick Romano, EW.com, 2 Feb. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cardinal sin.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Cardinal sin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cardinal%20sin. Accessed 6 Dec. 2023.
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