noun
-
the act of forgiving or the state of being forgiven
-
willingness to forgive
Other Word Forms
- preforgiveness noun
Etymology
Origin of forgiveness
before 900; Middle English forgifenesse, Old English forgifennys. See forgive, -ness
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.
The community’s emphasis on forgiveness—“the worst sin of all,” says Nash, “is to be unforgiving”—makes Hercule’s task of assigning blame more difficult.
Early Christians were acutely aware that they were sinners, that they would be judged in death for what they had done in life, that they needed to atone and seek God’s forgiveness.
Nelson Mandela declared that the mentality of revenge destroys nations, while the mentality of forgiveness builds them.
From Salon
But all the pain that came from that, and forgiveness.
From Los Angeles Times
In 2024, she opened up about “forgiveness,” noting in an interview with First for Women that her family has always been able to let go of others’ mistakes.
From MarketWatch
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
