Forgiveness

How to spell forgiveness

11 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce forgiveness

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does forgiveness mean?

1. nounThe act of pardoning someone for an offence, mistake, or debt, and giving up any resentment or claim against them.

Forgiveness in a sentence

• She asked her brother for forgiveness after the argument.

• The charity offered debt forgiveness to families who could not pay.

Where does forgiveness come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

Forgiveness is a native English word, descending from the Old English forgiefnes, which was built from the verb forgiefan, meaning 'to give up, grant, or pardon'. That verb joined the intensifying prefix for-, carrying the sense of 'completely' or 'away', with giefan, the ancestor of the modern verb 'give'. The literal idea was therefore to give something away entirely, in this case a debt, an offence, or a claim to revenge. The structure neatly mirrors equivalents in related Germanic languages, such as the German vergeben, showing this is a shared Germanic inheritance rather than a later borrowing. The spelling keeps the plain English roots fully visible, since you can still see 'give' sitting inside the middle of the word, which is the most reliable cue for getting it right.

How the word is built

• for- (intensive prefix, completely)
• give (to grant)
• -ness (noun-forming suffix, state or quality)