as in pardonable
worthy of forgiveness
taking the restaurant's menu as a souvenir seems like a venial offense
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of venial
But logging off—and returning to the sphere in which people are apt to forgive one another for venial affronts—is no longer an option.
—
Becca Rothfeld, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2022
And that loyalty has been reciprocated with job security and forgiveness of venial sins.
—cleveland, 12 Dec. 2021
The list is long of international companies, and even celebrities, who’ve groveled in apology for sins as venial as recognizing Taiwan.
—Kevin T. Dugan, Fortune, 8 Sep. 2021
This would have encouraged him at sensitive ages and times in his life to seriously think about the distinctions between sins of omission and sins of commission, between white lies and perjury, between venial and mortal sins, and the relationship between knowledge, intention, and guilt.
—Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 5 Mar. 2021
This is, of course, the day-to-day venial reality for attorneys who don’t prosecute serial killers, and Saul can always extrapolate small crimes into tall tales.
—Darren Franich, EW.com, 18 June 2020
Taibbi favors a cynical style evenly applied across the universe of real and perceived journalistic trespasses, challenging a reader to sort mortal from venial.
—Ann Marie Lipinski, Washington Post, 18 Oct. 2019
His presence was more difficult to justify than the venial offenses of Spygate or Deflategate.
—BostonGlobe.com, 22 Sep. 2019
Becca Rothfeld, The New Yorker, 21 Mar. 2022
And that loyalty has been reciprocated with job security and forgiveness of venial sins.
—cleveland, 12 Dec. 2021
The list is long of international companies, and even celebrities, who’ve groveled in apology for sins as venial as recognizing Taiwan.
—Kevin T. Dugan, Fortune, 8 Sep. 2021
This would have encouraged him at sensitive ages and times in his life to seriously think about the distinctions between sins of omission and sins of commission, between white lies and perjury, between venial and mortal sins, and the relationship between knowledge, intention, and guilt.
—Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 5 Mar. 2021
This is, of course, the day-to-day venial reality for attorneys who don’t prosecute serial killers, and Saul can always extrapolate small crimes into tall tales.
—Darren Franich, EW.com, 18 June 2020
Taibbi favors a cynical style evenly applied across the universe of real and perceived journalistic trespasses, challenging a reader to sort mortal from venial.
—Ann Marie Lipinski, Washington Post, 18 Oct. 2019
His presence was more difficult to justify than the venial offenses of Spygate or Deflategate.
—BostonGlobe.com, 22 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for venial
Adjective
-
But in this instance, the breach is entirely pardonable, because these two men, Jun and Arthur, have just gotten married.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Aug. 2025
-
All this is to say that any excesses of enthusiasm for Friday (and Thursday) might seem pardonable, although each day reached the thermal pinnacle of the 80s.—
Martin Weil,
Washington Post,
19 July 2024
Adjective
-
Too many Republicans today seem to have a different idea, that bad behavior is excusable so long as the perpetrator is advancing their priorities.—
Colin Pascal,
Baltimore Sun,
4 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
And while most human errors are forgivable, maybe even expected, some cost more than an apology.—
Jason Phillips,
USA Today,
22 Aug. 2025
-
Initially, Congress authorized up to $349 billion in forgivable loans as part of the program.—
Kelly Phillips Erb,
Forbes.com,
21 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Security, errors, and trust dominate the risk analysis Despite the hype and muddled terminology, the core idea of AI agents—systems designed to autonomously take action to carry out specific tasks—is still generating a lot of justifiable excitement.—
Sage Lazzaro,
Fortune,
3 Sep. 2025
-
As an epic celebration of imperialism, colonialization, and warfare, the Aeneid is often viewed with justifiable wariness by twenty-first-century readers.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Venial.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/venial. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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