compunction

[ kuhm-puhngk-shuhn ]

noun

1. a feeling of uneasiness or anxiety of the conscience caused by regret for doing wrong or causing pain; contrition; remorse.
2. any uneasiness or hesitation about the rightness of an action.

compunction

/ kəmˈpʌŋkʃən /

noun

1. a feeling of remorse, guilt, or regret

Derived Forms

• comˈpunctiously, adverb
• comˈpunctious, adjective

Other Words From

• com·punction·less adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of compunction¹

1350–1400; Middle English compunccion (< Anglo-French ) < Late Latin compūnctiōn- (stem of compūnctiō ), equivalent to Latin compūnct ( us ), past participle of compungere to prick severely ( com- com- + pungere to prick; point ) + -iōn- -ion

Word History and Origins

Origin of compunction¹

C14: from Church Latin compunctiō, from Latin compungere to sting, from com- (intensive) + pungere to puncture; see point

Example Sentences

The stars of the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, however, have no such compunctions.

From Quartz

Plus, part of the reason he’s shot so well from deep is that defenses have no compunction about leaving him open.

From FiveThirtyEight

Ron and Russell, raised in Los Angeles, tell us that their parents loved bringing them to the movies, and had no compunction about walking in right in the middle.

From Time

You feel no compunction in removing them from the face of the Earth.

From Nautilus

Salazar, as Win at All Costs reminds us, had no compunction about gaming therapeutic-use-exemption rules to get his runners on medication for the specific purpose of performance enhancement.

From Outside Online

He had been audited when he was out of office, and now he had no compunction about using his power as president.

From The Daily Beast

This is a man who has traveled to Iran and China with no compunction.

From The Daily Beast

But we do know that voters who believe Mitt deplores them will have little compunction in not voting for him.

From The Daily Beast

Penn State students, however, have shown no compunction about buying up as many season tickets as possible.

From The Daily Beast

When I get them alone, I have no compunction about blowing them to bits.

From The Daily Beast

Why should he have compunction—why think about it, when the hour of repayment was so near at hand?

From Project Gutenberg

And, after one swift glance at the first letter, Aristide had no compunction in reading.

From Project Gutenberg

And, therewith, a great tenderness and compunction in this man's heart, and a steady determination to put things right.

From Project Gutenberg

Yet this conclusion of the intellect did not prevent the pain of pity and compunction, nor an inconsequent sense of guilt.

From Project Gutenberg

I felt in those moments that for every hair of her head I could have killed a man and felt no compunction afterwards.

From Project Gutenberg