Meaning & use
conscientious
Last updated
Meanings
adjectivecomparableapproving
Taking real care to do your work properly and completely.
Grammar: Describes a person or their work: a conscientious student.
Patterns
- conscientious about something
- conscientious in doing something
She is a conscientious nurse who double-checks every dose.
He was conscientious about replying to every email.
The conscientious intern stayed late to finish the report.
adjectivebefore a nounformal
Guided by a strong sense of moral duty, even when this is hard.
Grammar: Used in the phrase conscientious objector.
Patterns
- conscientious objector
As a conscientious objector, he refused to bear arms.
The official made a conscientious effort to be fair.
Word forms
| comparative | more conscientious |
|---|---|
| superlative | most conscientious |
Common combinations
- conscientious objector
- The conscientious objector worked in a hospital instead.
- conscientious worker
- The manager praised her as a conscientious worker.
- conscientious effort
- They made a conscientious effort to cut waste.
- highly conscientious
- Highly conscientious students often take thorough notes.
- conscientious about
- He is conscientious about backing up his files.
Synonyms and how they differ
- diligent
- Diligent stresses steady hard work, while conscientious adds a sense of duty and carefulness.
- meticulous
- Meticulous focuses on small details, whereas conscientious focuses on the person's sense of responsibility.
- dutiful
- Dutiful means obedient to what is expected, while conscientious suggests personal care beyond obligation.
- scrupulous
- Scrupulous leans toward honesty and moral care, more than amount of effort.
Opposites
Word family
- conscientiously adverb
- in a careful, dutiful way
- conscientiousness noun
- the quality of being careful and dutiful
- conscience noun
- inner sense of right and wrong
- unconscientious adjective
- not careful or dutiful
Commonly confused: conscientious or conscious? conscientious or conscience?
conscientious vs conscious
Conscious means awake or aware. A conscientious person takes care and does their duty.
conscientious vs conscience
Conscience is the inner voice about right and wrong, while conscientious describes a person who acts on it.
Practice
The teacher praised Maya as a ___ student who never skipped a task.
Choose one answer.
Conscientious means careful and dutiful, which fits never skipping a task. Conscious means aware, which is a common mix-up, and the others have the wrong word class.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “conscientious”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.