Repentance is the activity of reviewing one's actions and feeling contrition or regret for past wrongs, which is accompanied by commitment to and actual actions that show and prove a change for the better.
That is Wiki; a Christian would call 'past wrongs' sin and 'a change for the better' as giving one's heart to Jesus. How this 'Daniel' defines it is not revealed.
Before we can be saved we have to change our mind (repent) about two things. One is to admit that we’re sinners who would be hopelessly lost without a Savior, and the other is to believe that God sent His Son to pay the penalty due us for our sins so He could be our Savior. Therefore repentance comes before salvation, and that’s why we say, “Repent and be saved.”
Some people have the mistaken belief that to repent means to change our behavior. But if that was the case the phrase “repent and be saved” would mean we’d all have to stop sinning before we could be saved. It doesn’t make sense.
Many believers do experience a change in their behavior after they’re saved, But when that happens it’s not called repentance, It’s called the regeneration of the Holy Spirit.
Quoted from Jack Kelly
If I had to stop sinning first I could not be saved, if I try on my own consciously in even the slightest way, some other form in my flesh comes to the front in a big way. Oh the wretched sinful man I am. And when I ask for forgiveness from God, Jesus is my intercessor and I am made as righteous as He is instantly in Gods view. TY LORD!
In Hebrew it means “return” and is a component of atoning for sins in Judaism.
In the Christian sense and in Greek it is “metanoia”, simply meaning “changing one’s mind”.
While most people assume that repentance means some sort of works based effort, since Christ paid for all of mankind’s sin/sins, in order to satisfy the prepaid debt, one simply must be willing to “change their mind”. Once a person accepts Christ’s atoning prepaid deed of forgiveness, then the person is able, through the indwelling of (the) Holy Spirit to begin being changed, renewing of their mind by the washing of the Word.
Of course, (re)turning from sin is the intent, but repentance truly means simply receiving from the Lord, not giving anything to Him (He’s King of Kings if you recall, in need of nothing He only wants us to receive His gifts).
Now, before all the “working” class folks criticize me/my Words. Indeed, we are to make amends, seek forgiveness and cease in sinful acts (let me know when you get there, I’m still being remanufactured).
Get saved/reborn/rescued by Christ’s atoning sacrifice ( the means of being acceptable to GOD Almighty) first, then look to the perfecting of the person. Notice, nowhere in the NT is anyone asked to be “better” before Jesus or Peter or Paul etc healed, rescued, offered salvation to them.
“I believe, but help my unbelief” comes to mind.