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A cardinal sin is a major sin or offense of some kind; a major breaking of established rules or procedures; or a significant violation of a principle or doctrine, especially in a profession. Usage Although this idiom uses the word ’sin’ and relates to Christianity, it is often used humorously and almost always entirely figuratively. A cardinal sin might be described as ’unforgivable,’ but often in a tongue n cheek way. It’s applied to both serious situations as well as mundane and unimportant ones. Examples Of Use “Long respected in his field, it was recently revealed that in his most important work, he had committed the cardinal sin of plagiarism.“ “Did you hear Liam was fired? It seems he committed the cardinal sin of disagreeing with the boss.“ “With goalkeepers, it’s the cardinal sin if they let one in at their near post.“ “The chef lost the competition due to a rookie mistake, the cardinal sin of not tasting his dish before he sent it.“ “You have to make me care in the first five minutes of the movie. If I don’t care what happens to the characters, well, to me that’s the cardinal sin.“ Origin The word cardinal, in this idiom, means of the greatest importance, or fundamental. Cardinal sin is derived from the ’Seven Deadly Sins,’ first written about in the 6th century. Before this, the word cardinal was applied to the cardinal virtues: justice, prudence, temperance, and fortitude. All other virtues depend on , the cardinal sins, or seven deadly sins, were described by Chaucer in The Parson’s Tale, which was apparently intended to be the final tale in The Canterbury Tales: Of the root of these seven sins, then, is pride the general root of all harms. For of this root spring certain branches, as anger, envy, sloth, avarice or covetousness, gluttony, and lechery. And every one of these chief sins has his branches and his twigs. Shakespeare used the term in Henry VIII, published in 1613.
