penalty vs penance

penalty

noun
  • A punishment for violating rules of procedure. 

  • A punishment for an infraction of the rules, often in the form of being removed from play for a specified amount of time. 

  • A legal sentence. 

  • A direct free kick from the penalty spot, taken after a defensive foul in the penalty box; a penalty kick. 

  • A payment forfeited for an early withdrawal from an account or an investment. 

  • A disadvantageous consequence of a previous event. 

penance

noun
  • Any instrument of self-punishment. 

  • A voluntary self-imposed punishment for a sinful act or wrongdoing. It may be intended to serve as reparation for the act. 

  • A sacrament in some Christian churches. 

verb
  • To impose penance; to punish. 

How often have the words penalty and penance occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )