Noun: penance pe-nun(t)s
- A Catholic sacrament; repentance and confession and atonement and absolution
"He went to confession to perform penance for his sins"; "The priest assigned penance after hearing the confession"
- Voluntary self-punishment in order to atone for some wrongdoing
"Some ascetics practice penance as part of their spiritual discipline";
- self-mortification, self-abasement
- Remorse for your past conduct
"He performed acts of penance to make amends";
- repentance, penitence
Derived forms: penances
Type of: compunction, penalisation [Brit], penalization, penalty, punishment, remorse, sacrament, sanction, self-reproach
Encyclopedia: Penance, Sacrament of