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 bigger question is why we keep watching it, and what kind of human qualms and compunctions we have to push aside to indulge.

From New York Times

“Where Trump has absolutely no compunction at going to the basest level he can to try to get a result, I saw Joe moving into that very reluctantly,” Mr. Burris said.

From New York Times

In the old days, the leagues had few compunctions about shunning gambling because they saw it as a competing revenue stream.

From Los Angeles Times

He stopped short of accusing Kyiv directly, but on Sunday, some of his allies showed no such compunction.

From New York Times

An Oscar winner for “Argo” and veteran editor of such movies as “Zero Dark Thirty,” “Heat” and “The Imitation Game,” Goldenberg had no compunction about letting so many cooks into the kitchen.

From Los Angeles Times