PENANCE

I. noun Etymology: Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Medieval Latin poenitentia penitence Date: 14th century an act of self-abasement, mortification, or devotion performed to show sorrow or repentance for sin, a sacramental rite that is practiced in Roman, Eastern, and some Anglican churches and that consists of private confession, absolution, and a ~ directed by the confessor, something (as a hardship or penalty) resembling an act of ~ (as in compensating for an offense), II. transitive verb (~d; penancing) Date: circa 1600 to impose ~ on