venial

English

Etymology

From Old French venial, borrowed from Late Latin veniālem (“pardonable”), from Latin venia (“forgiveness”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈviːni.əl/

• Audio (Southern England):

  (file)

Adjective

venial (comparative more venial, superlative most venial)

1. Able to be forgiven; worthy of forgiveness.
   • 1826, [Mary Shelley], The Last Man. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC:

     He did not say that he should favour such an attempt; But he did say that such an attempt would be venial.

   Synonyms: pardonable, excusable, forgivable

   1. (often, especially) Worthy of forgiveness because trifling (trivial).

      His venial youthful indiscretions.

2. (religion, of a sin) Not causing spiritual death.

   Antonym: mortal

Usage notes

Venial behavior (mildly wrong behavior) is not to be confused with venal behavior (bribery/corruption).

Derived terms

• venial sin

 

Translations

pardonable; able to be forgiven

• Armenian: ներելի (hy) (nereli)
• Bulgarian: простим (bg) (prostim)
• French: véniel (fr)
• Georgian: საპატიებელი (saṗaṭiebeli), შესაწყნარებელი (šesac̣q̇narebeli), მისატევებელი (misaṭevebeli)
• German: lässlich (de), läßlich (de) (old spelling)
• Hungarian: bocsánatos (hu)
• Icelandic: fyrirgefanlegur m, afsakanlegur m
• Italian: veniale (it)
• Manx: so-phardooney
• Polish: lekki (pl) (sin)
• Portuguese: perdoável (pt), venial (pt)
• Spanish: venial (es)

excusable; trifling

• Bulgarian: дребен (dreben)
• Hungarian: megbocsátható (hu), elnézhető
• Portuguese: perdoável (pt), venial (pt)

Anagrams

• Lavine, alevin, alvine, leavin', levain, valine, veinal, vineal

Old French

Alternative forms

• veniel

Etymology

Borrowed from Late Latin veniālem, from Latin venia.

Adjective

venial m (oblique and nominative feminine singular veniale)

1. venial

Descendants

• French: véniel
• → English: venial

Piedmontese

Etymology

From Late Latin veniālis (“pardonable”) (probably via Italian veniale), from Latin venia (“forgiveness”).

Adjective

venial

1. venial

Portuguese

Etymology

Borrowed from Late Latin veniālis, from Latin venia (“forgiveness”).

Pronunciation

• (Brazil) IPA^(key): /ve.niˈaw/ [ve.nɪˈaʊ̯], (faster pronunciation) /veˈnjaw/ [veˈnjaʊ̯]

 

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /vɨˈnjal/ [vɨˈnjaɫ]

• (Portugal) IPA^(key): /vɨˈnjal/ [vɨˈnjaɫ]
  • (Northern Portugal) IPA^(key): /bɨˈnjal/ [bɨˈnjaɫ]
  • (Southern Portugal) IPA^(key): /vɨˈnja.li/

• Rhymes: -al, -aw
• Hyphenation: ve‧ni‧al

Adjective

venial m or f (plural veniais)

1. venial (pardonable; able to be forgiven)
2. venial (excusable; trifling)

Synonyms

• perdoável

Further reading

• “venial” in Dicionário Aberto based on Novo Diccionário da Língua Portuguesa de Cândido de Figueiredo, 1913

Spanish

Etymology

Borrowed from Late Latin veniālis (“pardonable”), from Latin venia (“forgiveness”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /beˈnjal/ [beˈnjal]
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: ve‧nial

Adjective

venial m or f (masculine and feminine plural veniales)

1. venial, petty

Further reading

• “venial”, in Diccionario de la lengua española [Dictionary of the Spanish Language] (in Spanish), online version 23.7, Royal Spanish Academy [Spanish: Real Academia Española], 2023 November 28