repent
repent Lexical Profile
repent Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To feel or express sincere regret, remorse, or contrition about one's wrongdoing or sin, typically accompanied by a resolve to change one's conduct.
"He urged the congregation to repent of their past mistakes and strive to live more compassionately."
To view or think of a past action, omission, or decision with deep regret or dissatisfaction.
"She soon repented her hasty decision to sell the family home."
• adjective
Creeping prostrate along the ground and often taking root at the nodes (used of plant stems or certain organisms).
"The ground cover spreads rapidly across the garden bed via its slender, repent stems."
Word Nuance & Usage
Notice the pronunciation and meaning difference between the common verb 'repent' (/rɪˈpɛnt/, stressed on the second syllable, meaning to feel remorse) and its homograph, the botanical and zoological adjective 'repent' (/ˈriːpənt/, stressed on the first syllable, meaning creeping along the ground).
• Rhymes for repent
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
The verb derives from Old French 'repentir', from Vulgar Latin '*repaenitere', combining the intensive prefix 're-' with Latin 'paenitere' (to cause to regret). The botanical adjective is a separate borrowing directly from Latin 'repens', the present participle of 'repere' (to creep or crawl, the same root that gave English 'reptile').