repent
1 Americanverb (used without object)
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to feel sorry, self-reproachful, or contrite for past conduct; regret or be conscience-stricken about a past action, attitude, etc. (often followed byof ).
He repented after his thoughtless act.
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to feel such sorrow for sin or fault as to be disposed to change one's life for the better; be penitent.
verb (used with object)
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to remember or regard with self-reproach or contrition.
to repent one's injustice to another.
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to feel sorry for; regret.
to repent an imprudent act.
adjective
verb
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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repentsimple
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repentssimple
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have repentedperfect
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has repentedperfect
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am repentingprogressive
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are repentingprogressive
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is repentingprogressive
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have been repentingperfect progressive
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has been repentingperfect progressive
Past
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repentedsimple
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had repentedperfect
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was repentingprogressive
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were repentingprogressive
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had been repentingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of repent1
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English repenten, from Old French repentir, from re- re- + pentir “to feel sorrow” (from Latin paenitēre “to regret, be sorry”; see penitent)
Origin of repent2
First recorded in 1660–70; from Latin rēpent- stem of rēpēns “crawling,” present participle of rēpere “to crawl, creep”; perhaps akin to serpere “to creep, crawl” ( see serpent ( def. ))
Explanation
The verb repent means "to feel sorry for something you've done." When you repent, you acknowledge what you did and vow to change your ways. The word repent comes from the Old French word repentir, which means, "to feel regret for sins or crimes." If you cheat on an exam in school, and feel guilty afterwards, you might repent for your bad behavior by confessing to your teacher. The verb repent is often used in a religious context: when you repent, you try to make up for what you've done, promise to avoid sin in the future and devote yourself to God.
Vocabulary lists containing repent
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Now as a bishop, with a Church commitment to tangibly repent for its past sins, she felt the institution was starting to better represent the Church her mother and many others had stayed loyal to.
From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026
He urged "those who organise death routes, traffic in human beings" to "stop and repent", raising his voice for emphasis as the crowd applauded.
From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026
For these reasons, and for all my aforementioned principles about allowing people to repent for their mistakes, I don’t think Platner should drop out of the race.
From Slate ● Jun. 2, 2026
Even the thief crucified alongside him, in the final minutes of his life, with nothing to offer and everything to repent, received the same promise: today you will be with me in paradise.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 2026
Meme managed to repent her impulse in a fraction of a second, but the repentance changed immediately into a cruel satisfaction on seeing that his hand too was sweaty and cold.
From "One Hundred Years of Solitude" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Grinch boosters point out that the villain repents and reforms at the end of the story, shedding his pathological hatred of Christmas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 25, 2025
The assumption is that Brady surely repents of the decision to return and that he is “a shell of himself,” as commentator Rex Ryan hazarded, and indeed he seems thin to the point of sickness.
From Washington Post ● Oct. 26, 2022
Welby, spiritual leader of the world's Anglicans, called for a "global financial architecture which repents of its past sins", including changes in tax rules to promote green activity.
From Reuters ● Oct. 4, 2021
That particular reality is redeemed in narrative terms — Scrooge repents and Tiny Tim doesn't die after all — but the observation stands, and we all know how the story ends in the long run.
From Salon ● Jan. 3, 2021
And again he said: "To rise betimes and to marry young are what no man ever repents of doing."
From How to be Happy Though Married Being a Handbook to Marriage by Hardy, Edward John
In several cases, countries that arrived at trade deals with the U.S. later repented because their deals were too one-sided, he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 3, 2026
John Paul visited him in prison in December 1983, where he repented for the crime but did not specify his motives.
From Barron's ● Nov. 27, 2025
Most of these old pirates have left the area - often they have gone abroad or have repented.
From BBC ● Dec. 21, 2024
Touching briefly on Paxton's affair, Buzbee framed the suspended attorney general as an imperfect man who had repented.
From Salon ● Sep. 15, 2023
Later on, he heard about his sins, arid he repented sincerely, but he thought the amending was harder than it had any right to be.
From "Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy" by Gary D. Schmidt
So, there’s a deeper meditation where you are repenting, not only for him but for the dynamics that are happening.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 17, 2022
Bryce Brewer, a Christian youth pastor in Spokane, Washington, wanted to “make Jesus famous” by repenting in a Facebook post for banning bikinis from youth camps.
From Washington Times ● Jul. 15, 2021
At one moment—around the time of his mother’s death—he is pulled back toward his inherited faith, repenting his lust for worldly success and begging forgiveness from God.
From The New Yorker ● Oct. 14, 2019
By repenting for his original sin with what amounts to an ecclesial nuclear option, Francis has quite possibly ushered in the game-changer in the Catholic Church’s long-running sex abuse crisis.
From Seattle Times ● May 18, 2018
Now repenting of their wickedness, the Bible explains, the tribes resolved to “go to a distant land never yet inhabited by man, and there at last to be obedient to their laws.”
From "1491" by Charles C. Mann
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
