Atone example sentences
Related (11): atonement, repent, apologize, redemption, penance, remorse, guilt, forgiveness, reconciliation, expiate, restitution
"Atone" Example Sentences
Common Phrases
- atone for
- seek to atone
- atone for one's sins
- attempt to atone
- ways to atone
- atone for the past
- atone for mistakes
- atone for wrongdoing
- help atone
- atone through action
Examples by Level
A1
- He wants to atone for his mistake.
- She did something wrong and now she must atone.
A2
- After the accident, he spent months trying to atone for what happened.
- The company is trying to atone for the pollution they caused.
B1
- He realized he couldn't atone for everything, but he had to try anyway.
- She felt compelled to atone for her family's past, even though it wasn't her responsibility.
B2
- The government's attempt to atone for historical injustices felt hollow without real systemic change.
- He'd spent years trying to atone, but she wasn't sure his efforts were genuine or just performative.
C1
- What does it mean to truly atone when the damage is irreversible and the victims are gone?
- She understood that to atone required not merely remorse but a fundamental restructuring of how she lived.
C2
- There's a particular kind of futility in watching someone desperately atone for sins that, in the end, only they remember.
- The question of whether one can ever adequately atone for systemic harm remains philosophically unresolved and deeply personal.
Examples by Scenario
🏠 Everyday Life
- My neighbor finally apologized for the noise and brought over cookies to atone.
- I felt terrible about snapping at my roommate, so I cleaned the whole apartment to atone.
💼 Workplace
- After missing the deadline, he stayed late all week to atone for the mistake.
- She offered to atone by taking on extra projects, but her boss just wanted the work done right.
📊 Business
- The corporation launched a sustainability initiative to atone for years of environmental violations.
- They're using this rebrand to atone for the scandal that nearly destroyed the company.
🛒 Buying / Shopping
- I spent way too much on a gift to atone for forgetting her birthday.
- He bought the expensive wine to atone for canceling dinner plans last minute.
✈️ Travel
- We planned this trip to atone for the vacation we canceled on her last year.
- He wanted to atone for the terrible honeymoon by booking a better one.
📚 Education
- The student offered to atone for plagiarizing by rewriting the entire essay honestly.
- The school is trying to atone for years of underfunding by hiring better teachers.
❤️ Relationships
- After the affair, he spent years trying to atone, but she could never fully trust him again.
- She wanted to atone for the harsh words she'd said, but by then he'd already left.
📰 News / Politics
- The senator's apology tour was widely seen as an attempt to atone before the election.
- The country is struggling with how to atone for historical atrocities without reopening old wounds.
💻 Technology
- The company released a software update to atone for the privacy breach.
- They're offering free premium access to atone for the data loss.
📝 Formal Writing
- The report recommends institutional reforms designed to atone for decades of discriminatory practices.
- The settlement aims to atone for the harm caused to affected communities through financial compensation and policy changes.