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What's the difference between venal and venial?
If you are given the choice between acts that are venal and those that are venial, go for the venial. Although the two words look and sound alike, they have very different meanings and histories. Venal demonstrates the adage that anything can be had if the price is high enough and the morals are low enough. That word originated with the Latin venum, which simply referred to something that was sold or for sale. Some of those transactions must have been rather shady because by the mid-1600s, venal had gained the sense of corruption it carries today. Venial sins, on the other hand, are pardonable, the kind that show that everyone makes mistakes sometimes. That forgiving term descends from venia, Latin for "favor," "indulgence," or "pardon."
Examples of venal in a Sentence
The Editors, National Review, 4 July 2024
Pig-butchering scams are almost without exception run by triad gangs who set up on China’s periphery, where the transnational nature of the crime, fuzzy jurisdiction and venal local authorities make cases difficult to prosecute.
—TIME, 21 Mar. 2024
The risk of instability and military takeover extends beyond the Sahel to other African countries where the West has tolerated venal and autocratic rule.
—Joseph Sany, Foreign Affairs, 30 Jan. 2024
But Safdie eschews the sleazy reality TV producer stereotype, creating a man who is both pitiful and venal.
—EW.com, 6 Nov. 2023
See all Example Sentences for venal 
Dictionary Entries Near venal
Cite this Entry
“Venal.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/venal. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.
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