soul searching

A form of soul-searching — Involving probing introspection, or a critical consideration of one's conscience, especially motives and values.

Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

nounsoul searching (countable and uncountable, plural soul searchings)

plural soul searchings

  1. alternativecountableuncountableAlternative spelling of soul-searching.
adjectivesoul searching (comparative more soul searching, superlative most soul searching)

comparative more soul searching · superlative most soul searching

  1. alternativeAlternative spelling of soul-searching.

    It must have been very soul searching for you.

    2012, Joan C. Curtis, Hire Smart and Keep 'Em: How to Interview Strategically Using POINT, →ISBN, page 124
    2 more examples

    While these questions are important and demand an intelligent response, don't allow the issues of the day to distract you from daily asking yourself the toughest, most soul searching questions of all:

    1997, Joey O'Connor, Excuse Me!: I'll Take My Piece of the Planet Now, →ISBN

    He raised some very soul searching and gut wrenching questions in his commentary.

    1999, House of Commons Debates, page 15893
verb
  1. gerundparticiplepresentpresent participle and gerund of soul search
Cite this entry
APA

soul searching. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/soul%20searching

MLA

“soul searching.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/soul%20searching. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “soul searching,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/soul%20searching.

Source: soul searching on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.