penance
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Islamic fasting is oriented toward submission to divine will, while Christian penance is animated by gratitude for the incarnate God who suffered, died and rose again for the salvation of humanity.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026
The new film is the director’s penance: an apologia to musical lovers who want to see the star do every inch of the dancing.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 9, 2025
Concluding that Didion left these pages behind so they would eventually take shape as the penance of an unreliable narrator is surely too tidy.
From Salon • Jun. 14, 2025
Mr Sloan said he later built the cathedral at Inch Abbey as "an act of penance" and made that into a Cistercian monastery.
From BBC • Apr. 20, 2025
“Yes, yes, just sit down, Goddard. Your penance will be to shut up for a whole five minutes.”
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
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Vocabulary lists containing penance
Fahrenheit 451
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The Poet X
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The Joy Luck Club
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