Meanings
comparative more unscrupulous · superlative most unscrupulous
- Without scruples; immoral.
Nazism, they wrote, had turned German youth into godless, shameless, unscrupulous murderers.
2016, Doris L. Bergen, “Flashover: The Killing Centers, 1942-1944”, in War and Genocide: A Concise History of the Holocaust, page 2721 more example
The real difficulty is with the vast wealth and power in the hands of the few and the unscrupulous who represent or control capital.
1888, Rutherford B. Hayes, edited by Charles Richard Williams, Diary and Letters of Rutherford Birchard Hayes, volume IV, Ohio State Archæological and Historical Society, published 1925, page 374 - Contemptuous of what is right or honorable.
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectivewithout scruples or principles
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*né
- Proto-Indo-European*n̥-
- Proto-Germanic*un-
- Proto-West Germanic*un-
- Old Englishun-
- Middle Englishun-
- Englishun-
- Englishscrupulous
- Englishunscrupulous
From un- + scrupulous.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian безскрупулен
- безскрупулен (bezskrupulen)without scruples
Chinese Mandarin 肆無忌憚 /肆无忌惮, 不擇手段的 /不择手段的
- 肆無忌憚 /肆无忌惮 (sìwújìdàn)without scruples
- 不擇手段的 /不择手段的 (bùzéshǒuduàn de)contemptuous of what is right or honourable
Czech bezskrupulózní, bezohledný
- bezskrupulózníwithout scruples
- bezohlednýwithout scruples
- bezcharakternícontemptuous of what is right or honourable
Danish skrupelløs
- skrupelløswithout scruples
Dutch onscrupuleus, gewetenloos
- onscrupuleuswithout scruples
- gewetenlooswithout scruples
Estonian siivutu, sündsusetu
- siivutuwithout scruples
- sündsusetucontemptuous of what is right or honourable
Finnish häikäilemätön, häikäilemätön
- häikäilemätönwithout scruples
- häikäilemätöncontemptuous of what is right or honourable
French inscrupuleux, peu scrupuleux
- inscrupuleuxwithout scruples
- peu scrupuleuxwithout scruples
- sans scrupulewithout scruples
German skrupellos, rücksichtslos
- skrupelloswithout scruples
- rücksichtsloswithout scruples
- gewissenloswithout scruples
- hemmungsloswithout scruples
- bedenkenloswithout scruples
- unnachsichtigwithout scruples
- skrupelloscontemptuous of what is right or honourable
Greek αδίστακτος
- αδίστακτος (adístaktos)contemptuous of what is right or honourable
Hungarian lelkiismeretlen, gátlástalan
- lelkiismeretlenwithout scruples
- gátlástalancontemptuous of what is right or honourable
- lelkiismeretlencontemptuous of what is right or honourable
Icelandic samviskulaus
- samviskulauswithout scruples
Irish gan scrupall
- gan scrupallwithout scruples
Italian senza scrupoli
- senza scrupoliwithout scruples
Māori kōroiroii, kōroiroi
- kōroiroiiwithout scruples
- kōroiroicontemptuous of what is right or honourable
Norwegian Bokmål skruppelløs, skruppelløs
- skruppelløswithout scruples
- skruppelløscontemptuous of what is right or honourable
Polish bez skrupułów
- bez skrupułówwithout scruples
Portuguese inescrupuloso
- inescrupulosowithout scruples
Russian беспринци́пный
- беспринци́пный (besprincípnyj)without scruples
Spanish inescrupuloso, desaprensivo
- inescrupulosowithout scruples
- desaprensivocontemptuous of what is right or honourable
Swedish skrupelfri
- skrupelfriwithout scruples
Turkish ahlaksız, terbiyesiz
- ahlaksızwithout scruples
- terbiyesizwithout scruples
- vicdansızwithout scruples
Cite this entry
unscrupulous. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unscrupulous
“unscrupulous.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unscrupulous. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “unscrupulous,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/unscrupulous.
Source: unscrupulous on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.