as in to compensate
to make up for (an offense)
tried to atone for forgetting their anniversary by giving his wife a truly extravagant gift
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for atone (for)
Verb
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So in one scenario, the researchers held the planet’s temperature constant (equal to today’s) and let CO2 drop to compensate exactly for the brighter Sun.—
Scott K. Johnson,
ArsTechnica,
15 June 2026 -
Add 2 ounces of water to compensate for shaking.—
Cameron Beall,
Southern Living,
13 June 2026
Verb
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Any available upgrade seats are first offered to passengers who opt to upgrade using dollars, then to those redeeming frequent flyer miles, and finally, complimentary upgrades will be offered to elite status members.—
Iona Brannon,
Travel + Leisure,
12 June 2026
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Rather than building toward a meaningful reward, consumers shift to short-term behavior which includes redeeming for low value items, disengaging, or spreading loyalty across multiple programs to hedge against future devaluation.—
Gary Drenik,
Forbes.com,
11 June 2026
Verb
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In other words, as much as 8% of the district’s budget gets spent on repaying debt.—
Joe Ferguson,
Chicago Tribune,
15 June 2026
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Others, such as Langley, scoffed at the idea of repaying NCDOT.—
Nicholas Sullivan,
Charlotte Observer,
13 June 2026
Verb
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The establishment later corrected the violation, according to a follow-up inspection.—
Lillie Davidson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
12 June 2026
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This article was corrected after it was published online on Wednesday, June 10, 2026, to correct the spelling of Anica Walls’ name, correct the number of the Assembly bill supported by SEIU and to delete reference to a parking waitlist, which existed prior to the return-to-work order.—
Evelyn Ronan,
Sacbee.com,
11 June 2026
Verb
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Larded throughout this scene is that unmistakable suggestion, yet again, that the play exists because its playwright needed — if not to right a cosmic wrong — to create a place to house or expiate his grief.—
Rhoda Feng,
Vulture,
23 Mar. 2026
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The Sisters have come a long way, but never strayed from their mission: to promulgate universal joy and expiate stigmatic guilt.—
Anita Chabria,
Los Angeles Times,
8 June 2023
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Cite this Entry
“Atone (for).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/atone%20%28for%29. Accessed 16 Jun. 2026.
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