expiable — that can be atoned for or made right through punishment, penance, or reparation
Part of speech: ADJECTIVE
Definition: that can be atoned for or made right through punishment, penance, or reparation
Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈɛkspiəbl/
Example Sentences
- According to the new civil service regulations, minor administrative errors are considered expiable through formal apology and corrective action.
- My roommate ate my last piece of chicken, but thankfully it was an expiable crime—he bought me a whole new box.
- In many legal systems, certain crimes are deemed expiable while others, like murder, are not.
expiable
ADJECTIVE[/ˈɛkspiəbl/]
that can be atoned for or made right through punishment, penance, or reparation
The knight's small mistake was expiable through a single act of service.
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🎤Pronunciation
🌳Etymology
Origin
The word derives from Latin expiare, formed from ex- (completely, thoroughly) and piare (to appease, placate the gods), with piare itself rooted in pius (pious, devout). Originally bearing religious significance—meaning to atone for sin by appeasing divine powers—the term evolved to its modern legal and moral sense of being capable of being atoned for or compensated.
Breakdown
ex- (completely, out) + piare (to appease, purify) + -able (capable of being). The suffix -able renders the Latin verb into an English adjective meaning 'capable of being expiated or atoned for'.
🎵Rhyme
🔗Collocations
📝Examples
“According to the new civil service regulations, minor administrative errors are considered expiable through formal apology and corrective action.”
“My roommate ate my last piece of chicken, but thankfully it was an expiable crime—he bought me a whole new box.”
“In many legal systems, certain crimes are deemed expiable while others, like murder, are not.”
“The professor said that plagiarism, though serious, is expiable if the student shows genuine remorse and rewrites the paper.”
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