impenitent
See also: impénitent
English
WOTD – 3 June 2022
Etymology
The adjective is derived from Late Middle English impenitent (“not penitent, unrepentant”),[1][2] from Latin impaenitentem, the accusative feminine or masculine singular of impaenitēns (“unrepentant”), from im- (a variant of in- (prefix meaning ‘not’) + paenitēns (“contrite, penitent, regretting, repenting”)[3] (the present active participle of paeniteō (“to be sorry, regret; to cause to repent; to repent”), from Proto-Indo-European *peh₁- (“to hate; to hurt”)). The English word is analysable as im- + penitent.
The noun is derived from the adjective.
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ɪmˈpɛnɪt(ə)nt/
Audio (Southern England) (file) - (General American) IPA(key): /ɪmˈpɛnət(ə)nt/, [-ɾ(ə)nt]
- Hyphenation: im‧pen‧it‧ent
Adjective
impenitent
- Not penitent; specifically (Christianity), not repenting of one's sins; unrepentant.
- Synonym: obdurate
- 1532, Thomas More, “The Confutacion of [William] Tyndale’s Aunswere […]. The Recapitulacion of all Tyndalles Processe Concernyng the Churche, from the Begynning hetherto.”, in Wyllyam Rastell [i.e., William Rastell], editor, The Workes of Sir Thomas More Knyght, […], London: […] Iohn Cawod, Iohn Waly, and Richarde Tottell, published April 1557, OCLC 1184573710, book IV (Whether the Church can Erre), page 613, column 1:
- [I]f they mende and repente better, will in ſtede of purgatorye which they nowe mocke & ieſte at, wepe and repent in hell this fooliſh fruitleſſe faſhion of their impenitent repentance.
- 1597, Richard Hooker, J[ohn] S[penser], editor, Of the Lawes of Ecclesiastical Politie, […], 2nd edition, London: […] Will[iam] Stansby [for Matthew Lownes], published 1611, OCLC 931154958, book V, page 370:
- The caſe of impœnitent and notorious ſinners is not like vnto theirs vvhoſe onely imperfection is error ſeuered from pertinacie, error in appearance content to ſubmit it ſelfe to better inſtruction, error ſo farre already cured as to craue at our hands that Sacrament, the hatred and vtter refuſall vvhereof vvas the vvaightieſt point vvherein heretofore they ſvvarued and vvent aſtraie.
- 1651, Jos[eph] Hall, “Soliloq[uy] XI. False Joy.”, in Susurrium cum Deo. Soliloquies: Or, Holy Self-conferences of the Devout Soul, […], 2nd edition, London: […] Will[iam] Hunt, and are to be sold by George Lathum junior, […], OCLC 926980637, page 37:
- But I pitty the flatteries, and ſelfe-applauſes of a careleſſe and impenitent heart: This jollity hath in it much danger, and vvithout ſome change, death.
- 1710 March 1 (Gregorian calendar), Isaac Bickerstaff [et al., pseudonyms; Richard Steele], “Saturday, February 18, 1709–10”, in The Tatler, number 135; republished in [Richard Steele], editor, The Tatler, […], volume II, London stereotype edition, London: I. Walker and Co.; […], 1822, OCLC 69947324, page 302:
- The minds, therefore, which they set at ease, are only those of impenitent criminals and malefactors, and which, to the good of mankind, should be in perpetual terror and alarm.
- 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “The Ship”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, OCLC 57395299, page 87:
- “Captain Peleg,” said Bildad steadily, “thy conscience may be drawing ten inches of water, or ten fathoms, I can’t tell; but as thou art still an impenitent man, Captain Peleg, I greatly fear lest thy conscience be but a leaky one; and will in the end sink thee foundering down to the fiery pit, Captain Peleg.”
Alternative forms
- impænitent (obsolete)
- impœnitent (obsolete)
Derived terms
- impenitency
- impenitently
- impenitentness
- impenitible (obsolete)
Related terms
- impenitence
Translations
not penitent
not repenting of sin
|
Noun
impenitent (plural impenitents)
- One who is not penitent.
- 1532, Thomas More, “The Confutacion of [William] Tyndale’s Aunswere […]”, in Wyllyam Rastell [i.e., William Rastell], editor, The Workes of Sir Thomas More Knyght, […], London: […] Iohn Cawod, Iohn Waly, and Richarde Tottell, published April 1557, OCLC 1184573710, book IV (Whether the Church can Erre), page 525, column 1:
- For as for the firſt kynde of eleccion, after whiche, Chriſte hathe choſen bys catholike churche out of the Jewes and Gentiles, to be his church here in earth: in thys kynde are there penitentes and impenitentes bothe.
-
Translations
one who is not penitent
References
- “impenitent, adj.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.
- “impenitent, adj.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.
- “impenitent, adj. and n.”, in OED Online
, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, December 2021.
Further reading
repentance on Wikipedia.Wikipedia - impenitent in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911
- impenitent in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
Anagrams
- pentimenti
Romanian
Etymology
From French impénitent. Equivalent to in- + penitent.
Adjective
impenitent m or n (feminine singular impenitentă, masculine plural impenitenți, feminine and neuter plural impenitente)
- unrepentant
Declension
Declension of impenitent
| singular | plural | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | neuter | feminine | masculine | neuter | feminine | ||
| nominative/ accusative | indefinite | impenitent | impenitentă | impenitenți | impenitente | ||
| definite | impenitentul | impenitenta | impenitenții | impenitentele | |||
| genitive/ dative | indefinite | impenitent | impenitente | impenitenți | impenitente | ||
| definite | impenitentului | impenitentei | impenitenților | impenitentelor | |||