as in doubts
an uneasy feeling about the rightness of what one is doing or going to do
throughout her school years she cheated without compunction
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Recent Examples of compunctions
Russia and Ukraine show no compunctions about killing the civilians of their enemy.
—
Oded J K Faran, Oc Register, 21 Oct. 2025
The boundaries of the world are delineated neatly by your compunctions.
—Matthew Shen Goodman, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
Oded J K Faran, Oc Register, 21 Oct. 2025
The boundaries of the world are delineated neatly by your compunctions.
—Matthew Shen Goodman, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for compunctions
Noun
-
Fear of retaliation, skepticism about human resources departments and doubts about whether complaints will be taken seriously continue to shape how, and whether, women speak up.—
Maggie McGrath,
Forbes.com,
23 Jan. 2026
-
McCall expressed doubts as to whether the equal-time law would stand up if it were challenged in the courts.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Based on appearance alone, us Robb Reporters had a few qualms with Ethel M’s chocolate.—
Nicole Hoey,
Robb Report,
24 Jan. 2026
-
Epstein used to caution the media about the risks of signing free agents past age 30 to long-term deals, but Hoyer had no qualms giving the 31-year-old Bregman five years and a coveted no-trade clause.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Heading into the week, Senate GOP leaders were forging ahead with the funding plan, beginning procedural steps Monday to put the full package of bills on the floor later this week despite objections from Democrats.—
Kaia Hubbard,
CBS News,
27 Jan. 2026
-
In 2015, Suzuki found that Abe’s allies had signed off on the Church’s name change (to the Family Federation) over the objections of other government officials and civic groups.—
E. Tammy Kim,
New Yorker,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Mainstream Republicans and right-leaning unaffiliated voters will gravitate to candidates with experience and scruples.—
Krista Kafer,
Denver Post,
31 Dec. 2025
-
For Jay Gatsby, a man of immense wealth and few scruples, almost nothing is beyond his voracious appetite for excess.—
David Lyman,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Thus far, though, her films express misgivings about the virtue of those bonds.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Jan. 2026
-
With Lee’s help, Capote worked to tamp down misgivings.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Compunctions.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/compunctions. Accessed 29 Jan. 2026.
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