How to Use atone in a Sentence

atone

verb
Definition of atonenext
Synonyms for atonenext
  • Simply paying more from one year to the next does not atone for the grave offense at hand.
    — Adam Parness, Billboard, 22 May 2024
  • Garrett atoned for the broken board by washing Gustavo’s car.
    — Paul Theroux, Smithsonian, 27 June 2018
  • Perhaps making renewable energy a pillar of its new strategy is an attempt to atone for that sin.
    — Hallie Detrick, Fortune, 26 June 2018
  • Brazilian players are trying to atone for the 7-1 humiliation against Germany in the semifinals at home four years ago.
    — Ronald Blum, chicagotribune.com, 28 June 2018
  • The first wave of lawsuits to make oil companies atone for their alleged climate sins was beaten back this week by federal Judge William Alsup.
    — The Editorial Board, WSJ, 29 June 2018
  • For many conservative Evangelicals, the focus is more upon the atoning blood of Christ and the price paid for the forgiveness of sins.
    — Harry Bruinius, The Christian Science Monitor, 11 July 2018
  • The resources industry is notoriously cyclical, and has spent years returning cash to shareholders to atone for the mountains of capital wasted during its last splurge.
    — David Fickling | Bloomberg, Washington Post, 15 May 2019
  • These scenarios have ignited a conversation about how men atone for inappropriate behavior.
    — Julyssa Lopez, Glamour, 28 Aug. 2018
  • Some may see this as the chance to atone for that mistake.
    — Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press, 8 Nov. 2021
  • If there’s rot at the heart of things, how can Greta atone?
    — Bethanne Patrick, Los Angeles Times, 2 Feb. 2023
  • Each one of them, Josh knew, was trying to atone for a wrong.
    — Lizzie Johnson, San Francisco Chronicle, 10 Nov. 2021
  • In a tie game, and the power play 0 for 3 to that point, DeBrusk atoned.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 30 Dec. 2019
  • But the display of piety has done little to mask that the army chief has much to atone for.
    — New York Times, 2 Feb. 2021
  • That very night, Enkidu has a dream that, to atone for the crime of murdering the Bull of Heaven, one of the two men must die.
    — Joan Acocella, The New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2019
  • How does a city atone for killing as many as 300 of its Black citizens?
    — Maria C. Hunt, House Beautiful, 1 June 2021
  • None may atone for my actions but me and only in me shall their stain live on.
    — Jennifer Maas, Variety, 25 Feb. 2022
  • Moses destroyed the tablets in anger, but the people atoned for their sin, so God forgave them.
    — Sofia Barrett, CNN, 24 Sep. 2023
  • The Eagles are on a mission to atone for missing a state berth by one place last year.
    — Joe Magill, cleveland, 13 Oct. 2022
  • Putting the rotation on his shoulders in the second half would do a lot to atone for that.
    — Peter Abraham, BostonGlobe.com, 8 July 2022
  • Hopefully for the Browns, Wilson will soon have a chance to atone for the mistake.
    — cleveland, 19 Aug. 2020
  • There have been some moves to atone for the bitter history.
    — Yuri Kageyama, Star Tribune, 9 Aug. 2020
  • To atone for that addition, perhaps, the owners kept the ratty red vinyl on the stools at the counter.
    — Pete Wells, New York Times, 6 Dec. 2022
  • Is there any way to atone for one’s mistakes, no matter how grave?
    — Los Angeles Times, 28 Oct. 2021
  • To Garrett, the extension was a way to give back more and atone for his mistake.
    — cleveland, 9 Sep. 2020
  • Germany’s efforts to atone for the Holocaust are well known.
    — New York Times, 28 May 2021
  • So those who want to improve their standing must atone.
    — al, 30 Sep. 2019
  • Biden has the chance to atone for the sins of his forebears and build up some serious street cred on climate.
    — Bill McKibben, The New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2021
  • On Yom Kippur, Jewish people atone for their sins from the past year.
    — CNN, 2 Sep. 2021
  • Cassie loves to party but dies in a freak accident and must atone for her wrongs on earth to earn her wings.
    — Washington Post, 2 Sep. 2021
  • Since that night, people treated the shooting like a soap opera or binary of fandom instead of a traumatic incident that someone should atone for.
    — Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 27 Feb. 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'atone.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: