scrupulous
Americanadjective
-
having scruples, or moral or ethical standards; having or showing a strict regard for what one considers right; principled.
scrupulous about defending human rights.
- Synonyms:
- ethical , moral , upright , honest , conscientious
-
punctiliously or minutely careful, precise, or exact.
a scrupulous attention to detail in their performance.
- Synonyms:
- rigorous , exacting , circumspect , cautious , thorough , meticulous , careful
- Antonyms:
- careless
adjective
-
characterized by careful observation of what is morally right
-
very careful or precise
Related Words
Scrupulous, punctilious imply abiding exactly by rules. Scrupulous implies conscientious carefulness in attending to details: scrupulous attention to details. Punctilious suggests strictness, preciseness, and rigidity, especially in observance of social conventions.
Other Word Forms
- hyperscrupulosity noun
- hyperscrupulous adjective
- hyperscrupulousness noun
- scrupulosity noun
- scrupulously adverb
- scrupulousness noun
- underscrupulous adjective
Etymology
Origin of scrupulous
First recorded in 1400–50; a late Middle English word from Latin scrūpulōsus; scruple, -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.
He meticulously painted beer mugs, pipes, matches, newspapers and other everyday objects, paying scrupulous attention to texture.
Growers use blackout curtains to trick the plants into coloring earlier in the fall, but Kobayashi said they have to be scrupulous about keeping the greenhouses completely dark.
From Los Angeles Times
Damar's indignation about his eviction even comes with a scrupulous caveat: "I'm not angry at the tourists. I'm just angry at my own government."
From BBC
Not as someone with a shred of sympathy, or as a dogged and scrupulous seeker of truth and justice.
From Los Angeles Times
“Riefenstahl,” Andres Veiel’s scrupulous, powerful documentary about the documentarian’s efforts to rehabilitate her image and art — a biography folded into an investigation — amounts to one big “not so fast” of a response.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
