Impenitent

Part of speech: adjective

Pronunciation: /ɪmˈpɛnɪt(ə)nt/

Definitions

1. Refusing to show any regret or remorse for actions considered wrong or harmful
2. Displaying a stubborn lack of sorrow after committing faults or offenses
3. Exhibiting a persistent unwillingness to acknowledge guilt or feel repentance

Etymology: Latin gave English "impenitent" a notably sturdy building block: "paenitēre" meant "to be sorry, regret," so the word's core idea is simply the absence of regret. The Latin form "impaenitēns" joins the negating prefix "im-" (a variant of "in-," meaning "not") to "paenitēns," the present participle of "paenitēre," which is why the English word looks like "im-" plus "penitent" at first glance. Yet the chain runs through a deeper ancestor: the Latin verb is traced back to a Proto-Indo-European root meaning "to hate" or "to hurt," a rather harsh starting point for a word now used for stubborn unrepentance. English took the word in the Late Middle Ages, when it meant "not penitent, unrepentant," a sense tied closely to religious confession, where a sinner who refused to repent was in serious trouble. The religious flavour has faded, and the adjective now describes anyone who stubbornly refuses to admit wrongdoing, whether in a courtroom, a family argument, or a public scandal.

Synonyms: unrepentant, remorseless

Antonyms: repentant, contrite