soul-searching
Part of speech: adj
noun
Morphological type: compound
Etymology: From soul + searching; the noun is derived from the adjective.
Compound parts: soul
searching
Inflected forms:
form: more soul-searching
pos: adj
tags: comparative
form: most soul-searching
pos: adj
tags: superlative
form: soul searching
pos: adj
tags: alternative
form: soulsearching
pos: adj
tags: alternative
form: soul-searchings
pos: noun
tags: plural
form: soul searching
pos: noun
tags: alternative
form: soulsearching
pos: noun
tags: alternative
Senses:
gloss: Involving probing introspection, or a critical consideration of one's conscience, especially motives and values.
pos: adj
examples: 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; […]
His face is fair, rather oval, his eye dark, soft and bashful, glows with a soul-searching kindness; […]
He [Thomas Shepard] was a soul-searching minister of the gospel. By his death, not only the church and people of Cambridge, but also all New England, sustained a very great loss.
Very simple but very soul-searching was the preparation, but very peremptory was the command to all never to neglect to share in the divinely-instituted sacrament.
Whatever one thinks of [Frederick Campbell] Crews's indictment, the issues he raises represent important challenges to psychoanalysis and should encourage serious, even soulsearching, thought on the part of psychoanalytic adherents.
We should pause, even for a moment, to do a soul-searching exercise before participating in Communion.
The rate of soul-searching articles multiplied after a number of well-established figures lost their jobs in this century's first decade.
gloss: Probing introspection; a critical consideration of one's conscience; also, an instance of such consideration.
pos: noun
tags: countable
uncountable
examples: After much soul-searching I decided to confess.
You’d better do some serious soul-searching before you decide to leave her.
So it is with great regret, after long soul-searching, that I must inform you that I cannot in good conscience support your decision to pardon former President [Richard] Nixon even before he has been charged with the commission of any crime.
To the militarists foreign conquest offered a solution to several problems at once: how to expand markets for Japanese products, how to guarantee sources of raw materials, how to restore national self-confidence at a moment of soulsearching, and how to consolidate political power at home.
Much soul-searching is going on at the west London club who, just seven weeks ago, were five points clear at the top of the table and playing with the verve with which they won the title last season.
And yet, arresting figures suggesting a decline in early season ratings have prompted an outbreak of soul‑searching at those broadcasters and head‑scratching among analysts.
There was little soul-searching about how and why things have gone so wrong, or about the flawed, hyper-optimistic reasoning that prevailed during globalisation’s heyday.
In a way, a bit of soul-searching and humility would be no bad thing, because for those struggling to get by, there are few things more nauseating than the self-styled masters of the universe wringing their hands about the need to address inequality.
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