repent Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. verb turn away from sin or do penitence
    atone.
  2. verb feel remorse for; feel sorry for; be contrite about
    regret; rue.

WordNet

Re"pent adjective
Etymology
L. repens, -entis, creeping, p. pr. of repere to creep.
Definitions
  1. (Bot.) Prostrate and rooting; -- said of stems. Gray.
  2. (Zoöl.) Same as Reptant.
Re*pent" intransitive verb
Etymology
F. se repentir; L. pref. re- re- + poenitere to make repent, poenitet me it repents me, I repent. See Penitent.
Wordforms
imperfect & past participle Repented; present participle & verbal noun Repenting
Definitions
  1. To feel pain, sorrow, or regret, for what one has done or omitted to do.
    First she relents With pity; of that pity then repents. Dryden.
  2. To change the mind, or the course of conduct, on account of regret or dissatisfaction.
    Lest, peradventure, the people repent when they see war, and they return to Egypt. Ex. xiii. 17.
  3. (Theol.) To be sorry for sin as morally evil, and to seek forgiveness; to cease to love and practice sin.
    Except ye repent, ye shall likewise perish. Luke xii. 3.
Re*pent" transitive verb
Definitions
  1. To feel pain on account of; to remember with sorrow.
    I do repent it from my very soul. Shak.
  2. To feel regret or sorrow; -- used reflexively.
    My father has repented him ere now. Dryden.
  3. To cause to have sorrow or regret; -- used impersonally. Archaic "And it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth." Gen. vi. 6.

Webster 1913