Meaning & use
expiate
To make amends for wrongdoing, especially by accepting punishment or performing a corrective act.
See it in a sentence
He spent years volunteering to expiate the guilt he felt over the accident.
The character tries to expiate his crime by confessing to the authorities.
A note on using this word
Expiate is formal and literary, typically describing serious moral or religious wrongdoing rather than minor mistakes.
Words with a similar meaning
atonemake amends
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
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