cardinal sin
noun
: a very bad or serious sin in Christianity
—often used figuratively or humorously
Giving false information is a cardinal sin in news reporting.
He committed the cardinal sin of criticizing his boss.
Examples of cardinal sin in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Swing and bounce: Another cardinal sin for resorts—don’t swing or bounce the chairlift!
—
Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 24 Sep. 2024
Extractive ownership is the cardinal sin of American capitalism.
—The Sorenson Impact Institute, Forbes, 25 Sep. 2024
Aren commits the cardinal sin of the society and puts his needs ahead of his client’s and — finally — tells Jason about himself.
—Gloria Alamrew, refinery29.com, 22 Jan. 2024
Many of the participants in this macabre form of play have committed the cardinal sin of mistaking the rules of the highly constructed world of games for those of the real world.
—Linda Kinstler, Washington Post, 20 June 2024
In 1990, the band committed a cardinal sin by signing a major label deal for the Goo LP, but then, by charting singles without compromising chaos, flipped the ‘selling out’ thing on its head.
—Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 23 Jan. 2024
The downfall of Harvard’s president has elevated the threat of unearthing plagiarism, a cardinal sin in academia, as a possible new weapon in conservative attacks on higher education.
—Collin Binkley and Moriah Balingit, The Christian Science Monitor, 3 Jan. 2024
The residents’ cardinal sin is placing all the responsibility on a single man, eager to wash their hands of any guilt.
—Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 9 Dec. 2023
But Republicans emerged from a fraught three-and-a-half-hour meeting insisting that such a resolution could not pass without garnering Democratic votes—a cardinal sin among the party faithful.
—Grace Segers, The New Republic, 19 Oct. 2023
Frederick Dreier, Outside Online, 24 Sep. 2024
Extractive ownership is the cardinal sin of American capitalism.
—The Sorenson Impact Institute, Forbes, 25 Sep. 2024
Aren commits the cardinal sin of the society and puts his needs ahead of his client’s and — finally — tells Jason about himself.
—Gloria Alamrew, refinery29.com, 22 Jan. 2024
Many of the participants in this macabre form of play have committed the cardinal sin of mistaking the rules of the highly constructed world of games for those of the real world.
—Linda Kinstler, Washington Post, 20 June 2024
In 1990, the band committed a cardinal sin by signing a major label deal for the Goo LP, but then, by charting singles without compromising chaos, flipped the ‘selling out’ thing on its head.
—Jonathan Rowe, SPIN, 23 Jan. 2024
The downfall of Harvard’s president has elevated the threat of unearthing plagiarism, a cardinal sin in academia, as a possible new weapon in conservative attacks on higher education.
—Collin Binkley and Moriah Balingit, The Christian Science Monitor, 3 Jan. 2024
The residents’ cardinal sin is placing all the responsibility on a single man, eager to wash their hands of any guilt.
—Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 9 Dec. 2023
But Republicans emerged from a fraught three-and-a-half-hour meeting insisting that such a resolution could not pass without garnering Democratic votes—a cardinal sin among the party faithful.
—Grace Segers, The New Republic, 19 Oct. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cardinal sin.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Cardinal sin.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cardinal%20sin. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.
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