conscientiousness

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /ˌkɑnʃiˈɛnʃəsnəs/ UK /ˌkɒnʃiˈɛnʃəsnəs/ See IPA manual

noun

Meanings

1

noun
the quality of being careful, thorough, and dutiful in one's work

Her conscientiousness meant every report was flawless and on time.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the quality of being... diligencethoroughnesscaremeticulousnessdutifulnessscrupulousnessassiduity

Opposites

negligence carelessness laxity irresponsibility

Word family

Related forms conscientious conscience conscious science

Etymology

From conscientious + -ness, from Medieval Latin conscientiosus, from Latin conscientia ('knowledge within oneself, conscience'), from conscire ('to be conscious'), from con- ('together') + scire ('to know').

conscientia Latin scire Latin

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities Word Formation & Derivatives

# conscientiousness

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** ˌkɑnʃiˈɛnʃəsnəs
**IPA (UK):** ˌkɒnʃiˈɛnʃəsnəs

## Meanings
1. the quality of being careful, thorough, and dutiful in one's work

## Examples
- Her conscientiousness meant every report was flawless and on time.

## Synonyms
- diligence
- thoroughness
- care
- meticulousness
- dutifulness
- scrupulousness
- assiduity

## Antonyms
- negligence
- carelessness
- laxity
- irresponsibility

## Related Forms
- conscientious
- conscience
- conscious
- science

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: conscientia
- Root: scire

## Etymology
From conscientious + -ness, from Medieval Latin conscientiosus, from Latin conscientia ('knowledge within oneself, conscience'), from conscire ('to be conscious'), from con- ('together') + scire ('to know').

## AI Etymology
Conscientiousness is from conscientious + -ness, from Medieval Latin conscientiosus, from Latin conscientia ('knowledge within oneself, conscience'), from conscire ('to be conscious'), from con- ('together') + scire ('to know'). The ancestry passes through Latin conscientia and Latin scire. The prefix con- adds togetherness, combination, or intensification where the Latin formation gives it that value, helping to explain the word's surface structure; the suffix -ness marks an abstract noun of quality or state, so the English form is shaped by recognizable word formation as well as by its inherited or borrowed base. In present use as a noun, it means "the quality of being careful, thorough, and dutiful in one's work", keeping the historical formation close to the word's ordinary semantic work. Related words include conscientious, conscience, conscious, and science.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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conscientiousness

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