Advertisement - Continue reading below

Definition of "expiation" []

  • The act of expiating; atonement. (noun)
  • A means of expiating. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "expiation" in a sentence
  • "Some modern students of the Bible don’t like the term propitiation because they say it implies pagan notions about fickle gods who need humoring and prefer instead the term expiation NRSV."
  • ""If an angel from heaven came from almighty God, and told you that Richard was condemned to be chained on that plateau for a hundred years in expiation of his sins before he could enter heaven, and gave you the choice between sharing his exile with him or a throne in the world beneath, which would you choose?""
  • "His own meritorious sufferings in expiation for sin were once for all completely filled up on the Cross."