scrupulous - Wiktionary, the free dictionary
English
Adjective
scrupulous (comparative more scrupulous, superlative most scrupulous)
- Exactly and carefully conducted.
- ✤ Synonyms: meticulous, painstaking; see also Thesaurus: meticulous
- ✤ Antonym: unscrupulous
- ✤ Come on! You have got to admire their dedication to the rules! These two men are so scrupulous, they would sit at a broken red traffic light for six hours in the middle of the night. “Hey, red is red! We live in a civilized society! Red is red! We stay!”1
- Having scruples or compunctions.
- ✤ Synonym: worried
- ✤ Antonym: Machiavellian
- Precise; exact or strict.
- ✤ He is scrupulous in his finances.
- ✤ He is a scrupulous businessman and always acts in the best interest of his company.
- Wrongly feeling guilt or anxiety about one’s morality; suffering from scrupulosity.
- ✤ Synonyms: ethical, fair-minded, honourable, just, moral, righteous
- ✤ Because I have a scrupulous conscience, I sometimes need to be reminded that not everything I do is sinful.
Etymology
From Middle French scrupuleux, from Latin scrupulosus.
Pronunciation
- IPA: /ˈskɹuː.pjə.ləs/
- Audio (US): 🔊
Printed 2026-09-04.
(echo:: @ ⌗)
Footnotes
-
2016, Tim Carvell [et al.], “Special Districts”, in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, season 3, episode 4, John Oliver (actor), Warner Bros. Television, via HBO: ↩