Contrition

//kənˈtɹɪʃən// noun

noun ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The state of being contrite; sincere penitence or remorse. countable, uncountable

    "Jonathan's mother told Grace on a recent phone call that Jonathan showed no sign of remorse or contrition for his own sister's passing."

  2. 2
    sorrow for sin arising from fear of damnation wordnet
  3. 3
    The act of grinding or rubbing to powder. countable, obsolete, uncountable

Synonyms

All synonyms
attritionattritionabject apologyacknowledgmentagenbiteapologies

Example

More examples

"I have come to you in great contrition to atone for my sin."

Etymology

From Old French contriciun (French contrition), from Latin contrītiō.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.