From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishpenitentpen‧i‧tent1 /ˈpenɪtənt/ adjective formal SORRY/APOLOGIZEfeeling sorry because you have done something wrong, and are intending not to do it again SYN repentant a penitent expression —penitently adverb —penitence noun [uncountable]
Examples from the Corpus
penitent• Phil was trying hard to look penitent.• And he had a notorious asperity for which he was afterwards sometimes penitent.• He'd have liked to have seen Gina reading one of their notes with a penitent expression.• There are various Pelagias who are known as penitent harlots or virgin martyrs who died to escape a fate worse than death.• But Gao Jinjiao was rocking back and forth, bumping against the tree like a penitent little boy.• After watching a few more penitent men pass by I was ready to leave.• And to a penitent soldier a crusade was even better than an unarmed pilgrimage.• But the short version points to a promise of progress in experience beyond the stage of penitent sorrow.• He inherited a regular staff meeting and was penitent that he had never invented such a meeting in Durham.penitentpenitent2 noun [countable] RRCsomeone who is doing penanceExamples from the Corpus
penitent• At first they were protected by Catholic rulers, and seen as penitents entitled to alms and succour.• And no penitent in a confessional could have unburdened herself more pathetically than did my Maman that afternoon.• He became so identified with us that he was the perfect penitent and made the perfect confession to the Father for us.Origin penitent1 (1300-1400) Old French pénitent, from Latin, present participle of paenitere “to be sorry” 