MEANING
A person who acknowledges wrongdoing and seeks forgiveness, penance, or religious absolution.
Use it for
Words that belong together
- kneeling penitent
- penitent before a confessor
On the page
A kneeling penitent waited beside the closed confessional.
The confessor listened while the penitent unfolded a carefully written account.
Related words
Word forms
- Base
- penitent
Usage notes
Primary category: gothic. Forms: Singular penitent; plural penitents. Legacy lexical fields mirror sense 1 only. Use numbered sense fields for all meanings.
Practice this word in a sentenceYour margin notes
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