peccadillo

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English

Etymology

From Spanish pecadillo, diminutive form of pecado (“sin”), from Latin peccatum (“sin, error, fault”), from peccō (“I sin, offend”).

Pronunciation

Noun

peccadillo (plural peccadillos or peccadilloes)

  1. A small flaw or sin.
    • 1991, Douglas Coupland, “Celebrities Die”, in Generation X, New York: St. Martin's Press, →OCLC, page 112:
      We tolerate Irene and Phil’s mild racist quirks and planet-destroying peccadilloes (“I could never own any car smaller than my Cutlass Supreme”) because their existence acts as a tranquilizer in an otherwise slightly-out-of-control world.
    • 2016 May 19, Gail Collins, “Subtract One Clinton”, in The New York Times‎, →ISSN:
      The sex scandal issue isn’t really central, since Americans have a long record of voting for the candidates they think can deliver, regardless of private peccadilloes.
  2. A petty offense.
    Synonym: veniality
    • 1929, Robert Dean Frisbee, The Book of Puka-Puka, Eland, published 2019, page 106:
      When he comes to the prayer, he sometimes does me the honor of personally recommending me to the Lord, advising him that I am a worthy man and begging him to condone my occasional peccadillos.
    • 2019, John O’Connell, chapter 56, in Bowie's Bookshelf, →ISBN:
      No sexual peccadillo is left unremarked upon.

Translations

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