Word
conscience
Phoneticscon·science, stress on the first syllable
US/ˈkɑnʃəns/
UK/kˈɒnʃəns/
Definitions
01moral sense
B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun
n. the part of your mind that makes you feel guilty when you do something wrong.
n. the internal faculty that distinguishes right from wrong, often acting as a guide for ethical behaviour.
日本語:良心※
“His conscience bothered him for days after he lied to his best friend.”
“The whistleblower acted out of a sense of conscience, choosing to expose the corruption despite the potential risk to his career.”
Usage
Often used with adjectives like 'guilty', 'clear', or 'troubled'.
Pitfall
He was not conscious of his conscience.
He had a guilty conscience.
Do not confuse the noun 'conscience' (moral sense) with the adjective 'conscious' (awake/aware).
Antonyms
02personification of morality
B2 · Upper Intermediate Countable noun
n. an imaginary voice or person that represents your sense of right and wrong.
n. the personification of the moral sense, frequently depicted in literature or media as an external voice or figure.
日本語:良心※
“In the movie, a small character sits on his shoulder acting as his conscience.”
“The protagonist's conscience is represented by a recurring spectral figure that challenges his increasingly unethical decisions.”
Synonyms
03awareness or thought
C2 · Proficiency Uncountable noun Archaic · Literary
n. an old-fashioned way to say 'consciousness' or being aware of something.
n. the state of being aware or conscious of one's own thoughts or surroundings.
“The old book spoke of a man losing his conscience of the world around him.”
“In this archaic context, the term refers not to morality but to the simple conscience of one's own existence.”
Usage
Found primarily in historical texts or classical literature.
Synonyms
Collocations
Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “conscience” in context.
Verb
01. clear your conscience
“You need to tell the truth if you want to finally clear your conscience.”
verb + possessive + noun
02. salve your conscience
“He donated a small amount to charity just to salve his conscience after the argument.”
verb + possessive + noun
03. wrestle with your conscience
“She spent the entire night wrestling with her conscience before deciding to report the fraud.”
verb + prep + noun
Adjective
04. guilty conscience
“His guilty conscience kept him awake long after the rest of the house was asleep.”
adj + noun
05. social conscience
“The company was praised for its strong social conscience and ethical hiring practices.”
adj + noun
Noun
06. matter of conscience
“For many doctors, the refusal to perform certain procedures is a matter of conscience.”
noun + of + noun
07. twinge of conscience
“She felt a sudden twinge of conscience as she walked away with the extra change.”
noun + of + noun
Preposition
08. in good conscience
“I could not in good conscience recommend a product that I knew was faulty.”
prep + noun
09. on your conscience
“Do you really want the death of an innocent man on your conscience?”
prep + noun
Confusables
Conscious is the state of being awake or aware; conscience is the internal moral compass that judges right from wrong.
RememberConscious is about your senses; conscience is about your soul.
Real-World Examples
“Publisher Joseph Pulitzer once declared his dreams for his readership were “to arrest their attention, enlist their sympathy … stimulate their imagination, convince their reason, and awaken their conscience”.” “A decade later Amnesty International estimated more than 600 prisoners of conscience in the USSR.” Etymology
From Middle English conscience, from Old French conscience, from Latin conscientia (“knowledge within oneself”), from consciens, present participle of conscire (“to know, to be conscious (of wrong)”), from com- (“together”) + scire (“to know”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
NOUN
ADJECTIVE
Idioms
01. conscience money
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.C1 AdvancedIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.7.0–8.0TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 5.0–5.595–113TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.945–990
- Frequency
- Frequent
- Level
- C1 · AdvancedOxford
- Updated
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QR code
englishreference.com/q/conscience
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「日本語」 data: JMdict (EDRDG), CC BY-SA 4.0