What does "soul-searching" mean?

Probing introspection; a critical consideration of one's conscience; also, an instance of such consideration.

What is a synonym for "soul-searching"?

Common synonyms include: self-analysis.

Pronounced //ˈsəʊlsəːtʃɪŋ//.

//ˈsəʊlsəːtʃɪŋ// adj, noun, verb

adj, noun, verb ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Noun

1
Probing introspection; a critical consideration of one's conscience; also, an instance of such consideration. countable, uncountable
"After much soul-searching I decided to confess."
2
a penetrating examination of your own beliefs and motives wordnet

Verb

1
present participle and gerund of soul-search form-of, gerund, participle, present

Adjective

1
Involving probing introspection, or a critical consideration of one's conscience, especially motives and values.
"Fortune had showered upon him gifts unlooked for; had enabled him, had he been blessed with prudence, to keep the path where he could have been free from ostentatious obligation, on the one hand, and soul searching mortification on the other: but, like an improvident spendthrift, he had lavished away in the fever of indiscretion, the gifts she had bestowed with so liberal a hand; […]"

"Now it's time to do some serious soul-searching."

From soul + searching; the noun is derived from the adjective.

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