penitent
part of speech
adjective (penitent); noun (a penitent, penitents)
meaning for a pupil
1) Penitent means feeling and showing that you are sorry for doing wrong. tree →
2) (church) A penitent is a person who confesses their sins to a priest or does penance. tree →
sense in the lessons
In religious stories and in ethics lessons a penitent person admits a wrong and wants to make it right; the father in the Prodigal Son story welcomes back his penitent son. In formal writing, «penitent» describes a sorry look or voice. Phrases: «a penitent sinner», «penitent tears», «look penitent».
examples
- The penitent boy said sorry to his grandmother. tree →
- The puppy looked penitent after chewing the shoe. tree →
- The priest listened kindly to the penitent. tree →
- She wrote a penitent letter to her friend. tree →
- In the Bible story, the penitent son came home to his father. tree →
- Penitents in the old church wore plain clothes. tree →
- He was truly penitent and promised not to lie again. tree →
note
Adjective and noun; formal. Adverb: penitently. Opposite: unrepentant. Related: penance, repent. Do not confuse with «penitentiary» (an old word for a prison, mainly USA).
Trees and pragmatics
Every meaning and example of «penitent» parsed by Mova, each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.