All 4 Uses
scruples
in
The Turn of the Screw
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- The others resented postponement, but it was just his scruples that charmed me.†
Chpt All *
- I had a scruple, but I overcame it.†
Chpt Allscruple = an ethical or moral principle that discourages certain kinds of action
- I considered; I could meet on this, without scruple, any innocence.†
Chpt All
- So we circled about, with terrors and scruples, like fighters not daring to close.†
Chpt All
Definitions:
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(1)
(scruples) principles that discourage certain kinds of action
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(2)
(meaning too rare to warrant focus) Much more rarely, scruple can be used as a verb meaning "hesitate on moral grounds" as in "He lied and did not even scruple about it."
Even more rarely and archaically, at one time a scruple was a measure of weight equal to 20 grains (about 1.3 grams).