scruple
noun · verb
Simple meaning
Hesitation to act from the difficulty of determining what is right or expedient.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
skroopuhlSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈskɹupəl
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
Hesitation to act from the difficulty of determining what is right or expedient; doubt, hesitation or unwillingness due to motives of conscience; moral qualm.
verb
intransitive
To hesitate or be reluctant to act due to considerations of conscience or expedience.
transitive
To regard with suspicion; to question.
Raise scruples
“He lied and did not even scruple about it.”
intransitive
To excite scruples in; to cause to scruple.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: To hesitate or be reluctant to act due to considerations of conscience or expedience.
Used this way, scruple is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It turns up most in ethics or values contexts.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Reluctant or hesitant
- Usage feel
- Understated and gentle
Where it naturally appears
- Ethics/values
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
More ways to use scruple
- “The man scrupled to perjure himself.”verb
Share your sentence
Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: hesitation to act from the difficulty of determining what is right
Use This Word
See how this word sounds in a real sentence.
Ask Vocabaura
Understand the word your way.
What Does It Mean Here?
Words can change meaning depending on context.
Use it yourself
Knowing “scruple” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.
Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.