What does scruple mean?

Definitions for scruple
ˈskru pəlscru·ple

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word scruple.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. scruplenoun

    a unit of apothecary weight equal to 20 grains

  2. scruple, qualm, misgivingnoun

    uneasiness about the fitness of an action

  3. scrupleverb

    an ethical or moral principle that inhibits action

  4. scrupleverb

    hesitate on moral grounds

    "The man scrupled to perjure himself"

  5. scrupleverb

    raise scruples

    "He lied and did not even scruple about it"

  6. scrupleverb

    have doubts about

Wiktionary

  1. scruplenoun

    A weight of twenty grains; the third part of a dram.

  2. scruplenoun

    Hence, a very small quantity; a particle.

  3. scruplenoun

    Hesitation as to action from the difficulty of determining what is right or expedient; unwillingness, doubt, or hesitation proceeding from motives of conscience; to consider if something is ethical.

    He was made miserable by the conflict between his tastes and his scruples. - Thomas Babington Macaulay.

  4. scruplenoun

    A doubt or uncertainty concerning a matter of fact; intellectual perplexity.

  5. scruplenoun

    A measurement of time. Hebrew culture broke the hour into 1080 scruples.

  6. scrupleverb

    To be reluctant or to hesitate, as regards an action, on account of considerations of conscience or expedience.

  7. scrupleverb

    To regard with suspicion; to hesitate at; to question.

    Others long before them ... scrupled more the books of hereties than of gentiles. - John Milton.

  8. scrupleverb

    To doubt; to question; to hesitate to believe; to question the truth of (a fact, etc.).

    I do not scruple to admit that all the Earth seeth but only half of the Moon.

  9. scrupleverb

    To excite scruples in; to cause to scruple.

    Letters which did still scruple many of them. -E. Symmons.

  10. Etymology: From scrupulus, diminutive of scrupus; perhaps akin to σκύρος, ξυρόν, क्षुर: compare scrupule.

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. SCRUPLEnoun

    Etymology: scrupule, French; scrupulus, Latin.

    Macduff, this noble passion,
    Child of integrity, hath from my soul
    Wip’d the black scruples, reconcil’d my thoughts
    To your good truth. William Shakespeare, Macbeth.

    Nothing did more fill foreign nations with admiration of his succession, than the consent of all estates of England for the receiving of the king without the least scruple, pause, or question. Francis Bacon.

    For the matter of your confession, let it be severe and serious; but yet so as it may be without any inordinate anxiety, and unnecessary scruples, which only intangle the soul. Taylor.

    Men make no scruple to conclude, that those propositions, of whose knowledge they can find in themselves no original, were certainly the impress of God and nature upon their minds, and not taught them by any one else. John Locke.

    Milk one ounce, oil of vitriol a scruple, doth coagulate; the milk at the bottom, where the vitriol goeth. Francis Bacon.

    Nature never lends
    The smallest scruple of her excellence,
    But, like a thrifty goddess, she determines
    Herself the glory of a creditor. William Shakespeare, Meas. for Meas.

  2. To Scrupleverb

    To doubt; to hesitate.

    Etymology: from the noun.

    He scrupled not to eat
    Against his better knowledge; not deceiv’d,
    But fondly overcome with female charms. John Milton, Par. Lost.

Wikipedia

  1. scruple

    Conscience is a cognitive process that elicits emotion and rational associations based on an individual's moral philosophy or value system. Conscience stands in contrast to elicited emotion or thought due to associations based on immediate sensory perceptions and reflexive responses, as in sympathetic central nervous system responses. In common terms, conscience is often described as leading to feelings of remorse when a person commits an act that conflicts with their moral values. The extent to which conscience informs moral judgment before an action and whether such moral judgments are or should be based on reason has occasioned debate through much of modern history between theories of basics in ethic of human life in juxtaposition to the theories of romanticism and other reactionary movements after the end of the Middle Ages. Religious views of conscience usually see it as linked to a morality inherent in all humans, to a beneficent universe and/or to divinity. The diverse ritualistic, mythical, doctrinal, legal, institutional and material features of religion may not necessarily cohere with experiential, emotive, spiritual or contemplative considerations about the origin and operation of conscience. Common secular or scientific views regard the capacity for conscience as probably genetically determined, with its subject probably learned or imprinted as part of a culture.Commonly used metaphors for conscience include the "voice within", the "inner light", or even Socrates' reliance on what the Greeks called his "daimōnic sign", an averting (ἀποτρεπτικός apotreptikos) inner voice heard only when he was about to make a mistake. Conscience, as is detailed in sections below, is a concept in national and international law, is increasingly conceived of as applying to the world as a whole, has motivated numerous notable acts for the public good and been the subject of many prominent examples of literature, music and film.

ChatGPT

  1. scruple

    A scruple is a feeling of doubt or hesitation with regard to the morality or propriety of a course of action. It can also refer to a unit of weight in the apothecaries' system, equal to 20 grains.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Scruplenoun

    a weight of twenty grains; the third part of a dram

  2. Scruplenoun

    hence, a very small quantity; a particle

  3. Scruplenoun

    hesitation as to action from the difficulty of determining what is right or expedient; unwillingness, doubt, or hesitation proceeding from motives of conscience

  4. Scrupleverb

    to be reluctant or to hesitate, as regards an action, on account of considerations of conscience or expedience

  5. Scrupleverb

    to regard with suspicion; to hesitate at; to question

  6. Scrupleverb

    to excite scruples in; to cause to scruple

  7. Etymology: [L. scrupulus a small sharp or pointed stone, the twenty-fourth part of an ounce, a scruple, uneasiness, doubt, dim. of scrupus a rough or sharp stone, anxiety, uneasiness; perh. akin to Gr. the chippings of stone, a razor, Skr. kshura: cf. F. scrupule.]

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Scruple

    skrōō′pl, n. a small weight—in apothecaries' weight, 20 troy grains, ⅓ drachm, 124 ounce, and 1288 of a troy pound: a very small quantity: reluctance to decide or act, as from motives of conscience: difficulty.—v.i. to hesitate in deciding or acting.—n. Scru′pler.—adj. Scru′pulous, having scruples, doubts, or objections: conscientious: cautious: exact: captious.—adv. Scru′pulously.—ns. Scru′pulousness, Scrupulos′ity, state of being scrupulous: doubt: niceness: precision. [Fr. scrupule—L. scrupulus, dim. of scrupus, a sharp stone, anxiety.]

Anagrams for scruple »

  1. curples

  2. sculper

How to pronounce scruple?

How to say scruple in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of scruple in Chaldean Numerology is: 3

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of scruple in Pythagorean Numerology is: 4

Examples of scruple in a Sentence

  1. Anatole France:

    When a thing has been said, and said well, have no scruple. Take it and copy it.

  2. Anatole France:

    When a thing has been said and well, have no scruple. Take it and copy it.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

scruple#100000#120240#333333

Translations for scruple

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"scruple." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/scruple>.

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