actual sin

American  

noun

Theology.

1. any sin committed by an individual of their own free will, as contrasted with original sin.

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actual sin British  

noun

1. Christianity any sin that a person commits of his own free will and for which he is personally responsible Compare original sin

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Etymology

Origin of actual sin

First recorded in 1450–1500

Example Sentences

Between 1983 and 2013, Felton published more than a dozen books, with the collective message that clutter was, if not an actual sin, at least a failure of self-understanding.

From The New Yorker • Dec. 8, 2014

By the dogma of the immaculate conception, Roman Catholics regard the Virgin Mary as a unique human person, by virtue of being without original or actual sin.

From Time Magazine Archive

Having escaped from actual sin, but with spiritual life weakened, it almost falls a victim to Despair through excess of confidence and zeal to perform some good action.

From Spenser's The Faerie Queene, Book I by Spenser, Edmund

Nothing but actual sin is so paralyzing to a young man's energies as debt.

From Architects of Fate or, Steps to Success and Power by Marden, Orison Swett

Objection 1: It would seem that by being sanctified in the womb the Blessed Virgin was not preserved from all actual sin.

From Summa Theologica, Part III (Tertia Pars) From the Complete American Edition by Thomas, Aquinas, Saint