conscientious
Americanadjective
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governed by conscience; controlled by or done according to one's inner sense of what is right; principled.
She's a conscientious judge, who does not let personal prejudices influence her decisions.
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careful and painstaking; particular; meticulous; scrupulous.
conscientious application to the work at hand.
adjective
-
involving or taking great care; painstaking; diligent
-
governed by or done according to conscience
Related Words
See painstaking.
Other Word Forms
- conscientiously adverb
- conscientiousness noun
- hyperconscientious adjective
- hyperconscientiously adverb
- hyperconscientiousness noun
- overconscientious adjective
- overconscientiously adverb
- unconscientious adjective
- unconscientiously adverb
- unconscientiousness noun
Etymology
Origin of conscientious
First recorded in 1605–15; from Medieval Latin conscientiōsus, equivalent to Latin conscienti(a) conscience + -ōsus -ous
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Still, that will depend on lawmakers, regulators, and conscientious customers opposing this with all they’ve got, and soon.
From Slate • Feb. 27, 2026
"You have to be mindful and conscientious," she said, noting that last year's hosting gig in the shadow of deadly fires that devastated Los Angeles was a case in point.
From Barron's • Feb. 23, 2026
A spontaneous jaunt like that is probably something he wouldn’t have done years ago, but “after a lifetime of being a conscientious spender and saver, it felt deserved,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 8, 2026
Young men were able to choose either to serve or, if they were conscientious objectors, opt for social work.
From BBC • Oct. 15, 2025
But Kate confided that Lizzie turned out to be “too conscientious for mediumship.”
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
