as in ashamed
feeling sorrow for a wrong that one has done
a penitent gossip who had come to ask for forgiveness
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of penitent
But in the intervening months, Mr. Santos has struggled to maintain that penitent posture.
—
Grace Ashford, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2025
Your penitent correspondent humbly submits that the whole ritual has jumped the shark in Northeast Ohio.
—Sam Allard, Axios, 7 Mar. 2025
With an appropriately penitent look, Grant took a deep breath.
—Scott Huver, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Feb. 2025
But with Cash on the vocals, the song and the man singing are nearly penitent.
—Stephanie Kaloi and James Mercadante, EW.com, 21 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for penitent
Grace Ashford, New York Times, 24 Apr. 2025
Your penitent correspondent humbly submits that the whole ritual has jumped the shark in Northeast Ohio.
—Sam Allard, Axios, 7 Mar. 2025
With an appropriately penitent look, Grant took a deep breath.
—Scott Huver, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Feb. 2025
But with Cash on the vocals, the song and the man singing are nearly penitent.
—Stephanie Kaloi and James Mercadante, EW.com, 21 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for penitent
Recent Examples of Synonyms for penitent
Adjective
-
When the soldiers finally walk away, Noor is ashamed of Salim’s capitulation and practically runs away from his father.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
24 Mar. 2026
-
Many parents feel ashamed to ask for help, but reaching out builds connection and shows strength, not failure.—
Melissa Willets,
Parents,
3 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
To be sure, few freedom-loving people are sorry to see Iran’s late supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, gone.—
Storer H. Rowley,
Chicago Tribune,
22 Mar. 2026
-
But only sorry until the Gershwin got so irresistibly underway.—
Scott Cantrell,
Dallas Morning News,
22 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
She's been remorseful since day 1.—
March 16,
CBS News,
16 Mar. 2026
-
Melling’s scenes all took place in the objectively less exciting muggle universe, occurring along a fairly straightforward arc from spoiled bully to remorseful young adult.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
20 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Johnson wrote in a letter in the filing to the Illinois review board that Hoover is repentant and has the potential and the desire to live the rest of his life as a force for good in his community.—
Beatrice Peterson,
ABC News,
22 Oct. 2025
-
Perry had been reluctant to engage with recovery groups in the past, which are often structured around repentant confessions.—
Katy Golvala,
Hartford Courant,
4 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Despite reading Whitney’s letter at least twice, Henry — a narcissist — seems baffled that Whitney is not more contrite.—
Amanda Whiting,
Vulture,
23 Feb. 2026
-
When one woman sees her bad behavior caught on camera, she’s initially contrite.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Eventually, he was escorted out of the event space, with Palmer looking concerned for him and apologetic toward her co-stars and the crowd.—
William Earl,
Variety,
14 Mar. 2026
-
In a lengthy and apologetic statement, Altman claimed that OpenAI was now altering the terms of its Pentagon deal to explicitly prohibit the use of its AI systems to surveil US citizens, exhibiting a degree of people-pleasing normally witnessed in its sycophantic chatbots.—
Frank Landymore,
Futurism,
5 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
And the conflict behind it all dates back to a regretful college recruitment and housing decision.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
8 Mar. 2026
-
My regretful error was not planning to give myself enough time to properly shop.—
Colleen McNally Arnett,
Southern Living,
26 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Penitent.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/penitent. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.
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