contrite

con·trite | \ kən-ˈtrīt also ˈkän-ˌtrīt

How to pronounce contrite (audio)

\

Definition of contrite

: feeling or showing sorrow and remorse for a sin or shortcoming a contrite criminal a contrite apology contrite sighs

Other Words from contrite Synonyms & Antonyms Did You Know? More Example Sentences Learn More about contrite

Keep scrolling for more

Did You Know?

A person who is contrite may have rubbed someone the wrong way and caused bruised feelings - and there is a hint about the origins of the word in that thought. Contrite came to English by way of Anglo-French from the Latin verb conterere, meaning "to grind" or "to bruise." Conterere, in turn, was formed by combining the prefix com- and terere, meaning "to rub." If you've guessed that trite is a cousin of contrite (through terere), you are correct. Other terere descendants in English include detriment and tribulation, and very possibly the familiar verb try.

Examples of contrite in a Sentence

Allbaugh apologized, though it was clear he was hardly contrite. — Christopher Cooper &Robert Block, Disaster, 2006 … Teddy was immediately contrite. "That was stupid of me. Forgive me." — Jack Higgins, The President's Daughter, 1998 At the airport, the meter registers nine pounds, and of course he had said six or seven. I have a sense now of his feeling somewhat contrite, or perhaps only abashed. — Renata Adler, Pitch Dark, 1983 … for days afterward, afraid of himself and worried about his sanity, he would be contrite and terribly ashamed. — John Nichols, The Milagro Beanfield War, 1974 being contrite is not enough to spare you an arrest if you're caught shoplifting

Recent Examples on the Web Jenkins was hardly contrite and offered a hollowed apology when offered the chance to do so Thursday. — Chris Bumbaca, USA TODAY, "'Best news ever': Janoris Jenkins happy New York Giants cut him after insensitive tweet," 13 Dec. 2019 Initially, Korey appeared contrite over the allegations. — Sarah Todd, Quartz at Work, "Does Away co-founder Steph Korey really deserve to be CEO again?," 14 Jan. 2020 Beilein understands the severity of his error and is contrite. — Chris Fedor, cleveland, "John Beilein apologizes to Cavaliers players after calling them ‘thugs’ when he meant to say ‘slugs’ in Detroit film session," 9 Jan. 2020 The hundreds of text messages between Rosselló and his aides triggered fury that Rosselló’s contrite statements couldn’t dampen. — Michael Deibert, BostonGlobe.com, "Puerto Rico’s governor poised to resign amid ongoing protests," 24 July 2019 In what amounted to a resignation statement, the duke was decidedly more contrite than in his BBC interview of a few days earlier. — Max Foster, CNN, "Why Britain's Queen Elizabeth had to let Prince Andrew go," 22 Nov. 2019 Mark Dantonio should have been completely contrite after the game. — Teddy Greenstein, chicagotribune.com, "5 things we learned about Big Ten football after Week 7, including the countdown to the game of the year — and possibly the worst team ever. Plus, our updated power rankings.," 13 Oct. 2019 Jack was contrite, Jamal was wise & #Survivor gave it space to develop as a human moment. — Eric Todisco, PEOPLE.com, "Survivor Host Jeff Probst Addresses the 'Durag' Incident: It 'Became a Teaching Moment'," 31 Oct. 2019 But investment banks like Goldman and Morgan Stanley are contrite and asking themselves whether the traditional IPO, however lucrative for them, remains the best means to bring tech firms to market. — The Economist, "IPOs are a racket. But try finding something better," 24 Oct. 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'contrite.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about contrite

Listen to Our Podcast about contrite

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Dictionary Entries near contrite

Statistics for contrite

Last Updated

13 Feb 2020

Cite this Entry

“Contrite.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/contrite. Accessed 16 Feb. 2020.

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for contrite

contrite

adjective

English Language Learners Definition of contrite

formal : feeling or showing regret for bad behavior

See the full definition for contrite in the English Language Learners Dictionary

contrite

con·trite | \ ˈkän-ˌtrīt

, kən-ˈtrīt \

Kids Definition of contrite

: feeling or showing sorrow for having done something bad or wrong : repentant The prince lowered his head so as to appear humbled and contrite.— Sid Fleischman, The Whipping Boy

Keep scrolling for more

WORD OF THE DAY

stipulate

See Definitions and Examples »

Test Your Vocabulary

More Confusing Words—Quiz

The magician ______ moved the selected card to the top of the deck.

discretely discreetly

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

Dictionary Devil

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.