compunction

/kəmˈpʌŋk.ʃən/

//kəmˈpʌŋk.ʃən// noun

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"compunction" is a 11-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“compunction” is uncommon English (frequency #75,749 among 5,599 “C” headwords), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#75,749
frequency rank, English
5,599
“C” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - A pricking of conscience or a feeling of regret, especially one which is slight or fleeting.

Corpus desk

Index EN-compunction · compunction · English

compunction · rank #75,749 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #75,749
  • LEN-MEGA 11 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 5,599
  • PHOTO-FINISH committeeman

Nearest frequency peer: committeeman (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “compunction”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “compunction” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for compunction
PropertyValue
Headwordcompunction
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/kəmˈpʌŋk.ʃən/
Letters11
Frequency rank#75,749
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “compunction” in English

This scale runs from the tiny cluster of words that carry ordinary speech (left) to the long tail of words almost nobody reaches for (right).compunctionfalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

The axis is logarithmic, with each marked tick roughly ten times rarer than the last. Rare peers in the same band: “committeeman” (#75,748), “Comrie” (#75,750), “confectionary” (#75,751). Among 5,599 “C” headwords, “compunction” is #75,749. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

compunction is uncommon English at frequency #75,749 among 5,599 “C” headwords, classed as anoun, transcribed /kəmˈpʌŋk.ʃən/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "A pricking of conscience or a feeling of regret, especially one which is slight or fleeting.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for compunction, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since nothing in our dataset looks or sounds close enough to cause mix-ups.

Etymologically, the entry records: From Middle English compunccion, borrowed from Old French compunction, from Late Latin compunctionem (“a pricking”), from Latin compunctus, the past participle of compungere (“to severely prick”), from com- + pungere (“to prick”). The correct English form is compunction, spelled C-O-M-P-U-N-C-T-I-O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    A pricking of conscience or a feeling of regret, especially one which is slight or fleeting.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how compunction appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Besides, to do De Joinville justice, he felt, too, a degree of kindly compunction for the former harsh judgment entertained of one who so little deserved it; and—for there is no such thing in the human mind as an unmixed sensation—he was struck both with the spirit with which she resented, and the proud humility with which she forgave the affront.
  2. His age—his kindness, disarmed Pen’s anger somewhat, and made Arthur feel no little compunction for the deed which he was about to do.

Etymology

From Middle English compunccion, borrowed from Old French compunction, from Late Latin compunctionem (“a pricking”), from Latin compunctus, the past participle of compungere (“to severely prick”), from com- + pungere (“to prick”).

This word in other languages

compunción(Español)scrupule(Français)Gewissensbisse(Deutsch)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "compunction"?
"compunction" is spelled C-O-M-P-U-N-C-T-I-O-N. The IPA pronunciation is /kəmˈpʌŋk.ʃən/.
What does "compunction" mean?
As a noun, "compunction" means: A pricking of conscience or a feeling of regret, especially one which is slight or fleeting.
How do you pronounce "compunction"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "compunction" is /kəmˈpʌŋk.ʃən/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "compunction"?
From Middle English compunccion, borrowed from Old French compunction, from Late Latin compunctionem (“a pricking”), from Latin compunctus, the past participle of compungere (“to severely prick”), from com- + pungere (“to prick”). See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "compunction", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 11 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

chikungunya#75,721dispensable#75,807embarcadero#75,839expectantly#75,862

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list