Compunction

3 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Compunction \Com*punc"tion\, n. [OF. compunction, F.
     componction, L. compunctio, fr. compungere, compunctum, to
     prick; com- + pungere to prick, sting. See {Pungent}.]
     1. A pricking; stimulation. [Obs.]
        [1913 Webster]
  


              That acid and piercing spirit which, with such
              activity and compunction, invadeth the brains and
              nostrils.                             --Sir T.
                                                    Browne.
        [1913 Webster]
  
     2. A picking of heart; poignant grief proceeding from a sense
        of guilt or consciousness of causing pain; the sting of
        conscience.
        [1913 Webster]
  
              He acknowledged his disloyalty to the king, with
              expressions of great compunction.     --Clarendon.
  
     Syn: {Compunction}, {Remorse}, {Contrition}.
  
     Usage: Remorse is anguish of soul under a sense of guilt or
            consciousness of having offended God or brought evil
            upon one's self or others. Compunction is the pain
            occasioned by a wounded and awakened conscience.
            Neither of them implies true contrition, which denotes
            self-condemnation, humiliation, and repentance. We
            speak of the gnawings of remorse; of compunction for a
            specific act of transgression; of deep contrition in
            view of our past lives. See {Regret}.
            [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  compunction
       n : a feeling of deep regret (usually for some misdeed) [syn: {remorse},
            {self-reproach}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  81 Moby Thesaurus words for "compunction":
     attrition, bashfulness, beef, better self, bitch, boggle, boggling,
     boycott, challenge, complaint, conscience, conscientiousness,
     contriteness, contrition, demonstration, demur, demurral, demurrer,
     diffidence, disinclination, exception, expostulation, falter,
     faltering, fear, grievance, grievance committee, hesitance,
     hesitancy, hesitation, howl, indignation meeting, kick, march,
     misgiving, modesty, nonviolent protest, objection, pangs,
     pangs of conscience, pause, penance, penitently, picketing,
     pricking of heart, protest, protest demonstration, protestation,
     punctiliousness, qualm, qualm of conscience, qualmishness, qualms,
     rally, recoil, regret, reluctance, remonstrance, remonstration,
     remorse, repentance, reserve, rue, ruth, scruple, scruples,
     scrupulosity, scrupulousness, self-reproach, shrinking, shyness,
     sit-in, squawk, stickling, strike, teach-in, throes,
     touch of conscience, twinge of conscience, unwillingness,
     voice of conscience