Penitences

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A series of acts or feelings of remorse performed to express regret for past wrongdoings and seek forgiveness
2. The practice of engaging in self-punishment or atonement as a way to demonstrate contrition for sins or misdeeds
3. An assortment of rituals or emotional expressions aimed at achieving redemption and alleviating guilt for transgressions

Etymology: "Penitences" is simply the plural of "penitence," so it names more than one instance of the practice of self-punishment or atonement for wrongdoing. The singular traces back to Latin "paenitentia," meaning repentance, which came from "paeniteō," to regret or repent. English took it through Old French "penitence" during the Middle Ages, with the first recorded use around the thirteenth century. The most surprising link is that "penitence" and "penance" are doublets: two forms of the same Latin ancestor that reached English by different routes. "Penance" arrived through Old French as well, but it kept a sense closer to the religious ritual of atonement itself, while "penitence" retained the inward feeling of sorrow for one's sins.

Synonyms: repentances, atonements, contritions, remorse, penances