penitent

See also: pénitent

English

WOTD – 9 July 2012

Alternative forms

• pænitent (archaic)
• pœnitent (archaic, nonstandard)

Etymology

From Middle English, from Old French, from Latin paenitēns, poenitēns (“penitent”), present participle of paeniteō, poeniteō (“I cause to repent; I regret, repent”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈpɛnɪtənt/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Adjective

penitent (comparative more penitent, superlative most penitent)

1. Feeling pain or sorrow on account of one's sins or offenses; repentant; contrite; feeling sincere guilt.
   • 1838, Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy, B. Blake, p.730,

     If thou be penitent and grieved, or desirous to be so, these heinous sins shall not be laid to thy charge.

   • (Can we date this quote by Milton?)

     Be penitent, and for thy fault contrite.

2. Doing penance.
   • c. 1594, William Shakespeare, The Comedy of Errors, [Act I, scene ii]:

     […] But we that know what ’tis to faſt and pray, / Are penitent for your default to day.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:remorseful

Translations

Feeling pain or sorrow on account of sins or offenses; repentant; contrite; sincerely affected by a sense of guilt, and resolved on amendment of life

• Armenian: զղջացող (złǰacʿoł), ապաշխարող (apašxaroł)
• Catalan: penedit
• Esperanto: pentanta
• Finnish: katuvainen, katuva (fi)
• German: reumütig, reuig (de); bußfertig (religion)

• Greek: μετανοών m (metanoón)
• Irish: aithríoch
• Kurdish: poşman (ku)
• Russian: кающийся (ru) (kajuščijsja), раскаивающийся (ru) (raskaivajuščijsja)
• Swedish: botfärdig, ångerfull

Doing penance

• Catalan: penitent (ca)
• Irish: aithríoch

• Swedish: botgörande

Noun

penitent (plural penitents)

1. One who repents of sin; one sorrowful on account of his or her transgressions.
2. One under church censure, but admitted to penance; one undergoing penance.
   • 1837, William Russell, The History of Modern Europe: with an Account of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Longman, Rees, & Co., page 20,

     Wamba, who defeated the Saracens in an attempt upon Spain, was deprived of the crown, because he had been clothed in the habit of a penitent, while labouring under the influence of poison, administered by the ambitious Erviga!

3. One under the direction of a confessor.

Synonyms

• penaunt

Hyponyms

• (one under church censure): consistent

Translations

one who repents of sin

• Catalan: penitent (ca)
• Esperanto: pentanto
• Finnish: katumuksentekijä
• French: pénitent (fr) m
• German: Reumütiger m; Bußfertiger m (religion)

• Hebrew: בעל תשובה‎‎ m
• Irish: aithríoch m
• Maori: kairīpenetā
• Swedish: botfärdig syndare c

one undergoing penance

• Catalan: penitent (ca)
• German: Büßer m

• Irish: aithríoch m
• Swedish: botgörare c

one under the direction of a confessor

• Armenian: խոստովանորդի (hy) (xostovanordi)
• Catalan: penitent (ca)
• German: Beichtkind n

• Irish: aithríoch m
• Swedish: biktbarn n

Related terms

Terms related to penitent

• pen
• penance

• penitence
• penitente

• penitentiary
• repent

• repentance
• repentant

Further reading

• penitent in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• penitent in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• penitent at OneLook Dictionary Search