scrupulous
/ˈskɹuː.pjə.ləs/adjective
scrupulous is spelled S-C-R-U-P-U-L-O-U-S: 10 letters and 3 syllables. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 48,775th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adjective, scrupulous means “Exactly and carefully conducted” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in scrupulous?
| Letters | 10: S-C-R-U-P-U-L-O-U-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 48,775th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is scrupulous?
Scrupulous appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 48,775th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce scrupulous?
- /ˈskɹuː.pjə.ləs/
Scrupulous has 3 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-scrupulous.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of scrupulous
- more scrupulous comparative
- most scrupulous superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does scrupulous mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adjective
- 1
Exactly and carefully conducted.
- 2
Having scruples or compunctions.
- 3
Precise; exact or strict.
He is scrupulous in his finances.
- 4
Wrongly feeling guilt or anxiety about one’s morality; suffering from scrupulosity.
Because I have a scrupulous conscience, I sometimes need to be reminded that not everything I do is sinful.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Scrupulous in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| German | sorgfältig, gründlich , gewissenhaft |
| Portuguese | escrupuloso |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does scrupulous come from?
From Middle French scrupuleux, from Latin scrupulosus.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).