transgression

noun

trans·​gres·​sion tran(t)s-ˈgre-shən 

tranz-

: an act, process, or instance of transgressing: such as

a

: infringement or violation of a law, command, or duty

b

: the spread of the sea over land areas and the consequent unconformable deposit of sediments on older rocks

Synonyms of transgression

• violation
• crime
• sin

Examples of transgression in a Sentence

acts that are transgressions against the laws of civilized societies everywhere

a dying woman asking for divine forgiveness for a lifetime of transgressions

Recent Examples on the Web

After all, scholars have been assuring us for years that disco was a site of subversion, liberation, and transgression, and yet these findings clearly did not trouble the MAGA gang. —Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026

Miss Manners is at least relieved that your family’s transgressions are limited to eating sloppily, which doesn’t harm others. —Judith Martin, Mercury News, 23 Feb. 2026

And it’s been hard lately not to notice the trend toward more flagrant male transgression out in the open—more performative vice signaling among some of the most powerful people in the world. —Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 20 Feb. 2026

These transgressions had gone down famously well, but Tomlinson was still, in some ways, working through the emotional fallout of a conservative-Christian upbringing and a career forged in the parallel universe of the Christian comedy circuit. —Alex Morris, Rolling Stone, 18 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for transgression

• accession
• aggression
• compression
• concession
• confession
• depression
• digression
• discretion
• expression
• impression
• obsession
• oppression

Kids Definition

transgression

noun

trans·​gres·​sion tran(t)s-ˈgresh-ən 

tranz-

: an act, process, or example of transgressing