What Does "Pay One's Debt to Society" Mean?
"Pay one's debt to society" is an English idiom. It means "to serve a prison sentence or face legal consequences for one's crimes."Examples in Sentences
Here are three examples of the idiom "pay one's debt to society" used in a sentence:- After serving his time in prison, he felt he had paid his debt to society.
- The justice system aims to ensure that individuals pay their debt to society when they break the law.
- Some argue that rehabilitation programs are more effective than simply making individuals pay their debt to society through incarceration.
What Is an Idiom?
An idiom is a commonly used expression whose meaning does not relate to the literal meaning of its words. In other words, if you were to translate "Pay One's Debt to Society" word for word, there is no guarantee the translation would help you to understand the meaning.An idiom often includes a cultural or historical context that makes it difficult for non-native English speakers to understand. A phrase is classified as an idiom when a direct translation of the words does not reveal the meaning. Most idioms rely on shared knowledge or experiences known only to a specific community.
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