transgression
Americannoun
-
transgressions
plural
noun
-
a breach of a law, etc; sin or crime
-
the act or an instance of transgressing
Synonym Usage
See breach.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of transgression
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Latin trānsgressiōn-, stem of trānsgressiō “passage across, transition, violation”; equivalent to transgress + -ion
Explanation
A transgression is something that is against a command or law. Whether you are cheating on a test, or cheating on a spouse, you are committing transgressions that are not easily forgiven. A transgression can be a failure to do your duty. A sin is a transgression against God. The noun transgression is from Middle English, from Middle French, from Latin "act of crossing, passing over," from transgredi "to step or pass over."
Vocabulary lists containing transgression
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List 1
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Power Prefix: trans-
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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.
See Examples For:
The mistake, though, comes in reading transgression and a lack of conscientiousness as authenticity, or a reflection of a particular set of progressive politics.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
"These attacks represent a dangerous escalation and an unacceptable transgression," the UAE's foreign ministry said, adding that the country reserves the "right to respond".
From Barron's ● May 4, 2026
Are you trying to give people some kind of communal moment of transgression?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 4, 2025
A second transgression for Van der Mescht on 50 minutes, when he went high on a dipping Boeta Chamberlain, earned a second yellow and a 20-minute red to give a second window for Red Bulls.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2025
What happens in training is highly secretive, so there’s no point in taking action against me when no one will know what my transgression was.
From "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
In this case, Antonelli actually got a black-and-white flag, which is for more than three transgressions, and then exceeded track limits again.
From BBC ● Oct. 13, 2026
His comedic sensibility explores cruelty, shock, transgressions and antiheroes — and it’s also what continues to draw him to literature.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 5, 2026
That they were macho-coded transgressions was core to his sustained support.
From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026
The potentially reimbursed penalties are for transgressions including failure to file penalties, failure to pay penalties and failure to make estimated tax payments, she wrote.
From MarketWatch ● May 27, 2026
Mother discovered transgressions past, Sins of the man chosen to lead us.
From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz
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Get a wordDefinitions 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.
