Thesaurus results for ATONING

atoning

verb

present participle of atone

as in confessing

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Verb

On July 23, 1973, tragedy rippled through the Mexican American community when 12-year-old Santos Rodriguez was shot and killed by a Dallas police officer who tried to coerce him into confessing to a burglary by playing Russian roulette.

— Alexis Guerrero, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026
Throw in some divine intervention with the first Chicago pope confessing his allegiance to the South Siders, and the Cinderella story has captured the nation’s imagination.

— Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of confessing

Verb

Shortly after the report was published, sources debunked it, stating that Harry and Meghan have no intention of apologizing to the royal family.

— Allison DeGrushe, StyleCaster, 11 Oct. 2026
As Annie was apologizing, the woman with the curls took the bottle from her hand and threw it back anyway.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Oct. 2026

Definition of apologizing

Verb

To freshmen from then to now, whitewashing the rock(s) before the season has tended to create a sense of belonging and ownership.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 2 Sep. 2026
Japan’s Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum has been accused of whitewashing the country’s wartime past.

— George Nelson, ARTnews.com, 29 July 2026

Definition of whitewashing

Verb

Other extenuating circumstances beyond Goodman’s control also might be contributing to his reputation within the industry as a subpar defender.

— Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 27 July 2026
But, generally, only one property can be claimed, unless there are extenuating circumstances.

— Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 30 June 2026

Definition of extenuating

Verb

The centerpiece of the policy originally was his use of a 1977 law to declare America's longstanding trade deficits a national emergency, justifying double-digit tariffs on almost every country on Earth.

— ABC News, ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026
Advocacy groups are fighting to unseal the OLC’s memo justifying the deadly boat strikes in international waters.

— Perry Stein, Washington Post, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of justifying

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“Atoning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/atoning. Accessed 25 Oct. 2026.

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verb

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