scruple

Meanings

Plural: scruples

Noun

• a unit of apothecary weight equal to 20 grains
• uneasiness about the fitness of an action
• an ethical or moral principle that inhibits action
• Hesitation to act from the difficulty of determining what is right or expedient; doubt, hesitation or unwillingness due to motives of conscience; moral qualm.
• A weight of ¹⁄₂₈₈ of a pound, that is, twenty grains or one third of a dram, about 1.3 grams (symbol: ℈).
• A Hebrew unit of time equal to ¹⁄₁₀₈₀ hour.
• A very small quantity; a particle.
• A doubt or uncertainty concerning a matter of fact; intellectual perplexity.

Verb

• hesitate on moral grounds
  • "The man scrupled to perjure himself"
• raise scruples
  • "He lied and did not even scruple about it"
• have doubts about
• To hesitate or be reluctant to act due to considerations of conscience or expedience.
• To excite scruples in; to cause to scruple.
• To regard with suspicion; to question.
• To question the truth of (a fact, etc.); to doubt; to hesitate to believe, to question.

Synonyms

ace, atom, aught, bissel, bit, crumb, dab, damn, dash, diddly, dot, drop, dusting, fleck, flip, flyspeck, glimpse, glint, grain, halfpennyworth, hint, inch, iota, jot, lick, misgiving, mite, modicum, molecule, morceau, morsel, mote, ooch, ounce, particle, pennyworth, piece, pinch, qualm, s.ap., scantling, scent, scintilla, scooch, scrap, scruple, semblance, shred, skerrick, skoosh, skosh, sliver, smattering, smidge, smidgen, smidget, smidgy, smitch, smithereen, soupçon, spark, spatter, speck, speckle, spot, sprinkle, sprinkling, strain, tad, tidbit, tidge, tittle, toddick, touch, trace, trifle, tuppence worth, whiff, whit