penitence
4
7.9
- noun
- /ˈpɛnɪtəns/
:
penitencia
- He felt deep penitence for the mistakes he made in the past.
Examples
-
Though we cannot know Armande Voizin's last thoughts... we can hope they were thoughts of penitence.
-
Maybe- Maybe going to the seminary was my act of penitence.
-
Is there no good penitence but it be public?
-
And three, he would pay a terrible penitence for it.
Blog text (28) -
My parents seemed to take this as penitence.
Fiction book (1995) -
There is no experience so private as penitence; there is no season so social as Lent.
Academic text (2017) -
Within this system, acting sinfully calls for an act of penitence to bring forgiveness from God.
Academic text (1995) -
The nobler Christian mind has expressed itself clearly on this duty of penitence:
Academic text (2017) -
But prayer, penitence and charity avert the evil decree.
-
Are you now resolved to live alone for God in persevering prayer, in willing penitence, in humble work and holiness of life?
Synonyms
375
2.4
A feeling of being sorry and responsible for doing something wrong
156
4.5
A deep, painful feeling of regret and guilt after doing something wrong
31
6.6
A feeling of deep regret and a wish to change after doing wrong
27
7.4
A feeling of deep regret and an action to show you are sorry
19
8.4
A deep feeling of regret and sorrow for something you did wrong
16
4.2
A feeling of being sorry and worried after doing something wrong
1
6.1
A sudden sharp feeling of regret about something you did or did not do
1
3.9
Feeling sorry and responsible for doing something wrong
1
9.5
Feeling sorry for sin mainly because you fear punishment rather than out of love
A deep feeling of regret and sorrow for doing something wrong
Antonyms
How Remorseful
Surface Forms
Morphology
penitence = penitent (transparent) = penit + ence
The noun denotes the state or quality of being 'penitent' and is formed by a regular '-ence' nominalization of the adjective.
Etymology
Penitence comes from the Latin word paenitentia, from paenitere meaning 'to be sorry' or 'to regret'. It is the same root as penitent and penance, so think of someone who is sorry and wants to make things right — that is why penitence means the deep regret you feel for something wrong you have done.