What does "self-examination" mean?

An examination of oneself; scrutiny of one's own state, condition, motives, etc.

What is a synonym for "self-examination"?

Common synonyms include: introspection, self-contemplation, self-exam, self-knowledge.

Self-examination

noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun

1
An examination of oneself; scrutiny of one's own state, condition, motives, etc.
2
the contemplation of your own thoughts and desires and conduct wordnet
3
The action of examining one's own body for signs of illness

Synonyms

All synonyms

introspection self-contemplation self-exam self-knowledge

Example

More examples

"In fact history does not belong to us but rather we to it. Long before we understand ourselves through the process of self-examination, we understand ourselves in a self-evident way in the family, society, and state in which we live."

Etymology

From self- + examination.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.