cardinal sin

noun

1. theol any of the seven deadly sins
2. informal.
   an unforgivable error or misjudgment

   lack of impartiality is considered a cardinal sin in broadcasting circles

Example Sentences

I was sure the owner committed the cardinal sin of improperly storing his wine, and I smote him with all the fervor of a zealot.

From The Daily Beast

And ringing false is the cardinal sin of the Chuck Norris universe.

From The Daily Beast

Odd—when Pax had ruled, there were thought police and the cardinal sin was to be a liberal, to experiment, to seek knowledge.

From Project Gutenberg

To persons deeply imbued with religious feeling, hypocrisy is the cardinal sin.

From Project Gutenberg

The dramatist who hangs his characters to his plot, instead of hanging his plot to his characters, is guilty of cardinal sin.

From Project Gutenberg

It is the cardinal sin against which the Society of Friends have always striven.

From Project Gutenberg

From the foregoing estimate it may easily be gathered that imperfect technique is the cardinal sin of the average amateur poet.

From Project Gutenberg