QUALM
What does "QUALM" mean?
An uneasy feeling of doubt, worry, or scruple, especially about one's conduct.
Meanings
- A misgiving or feeling of doubt, especially about whether something is right. He took the money without the slightest qualm.
- A sudden brief feeling of sickness or faintness. A qualm passed over her as the boat began to rock. archaic
Did you know?
- A 'qualm' once carried real menace: its likely Old English ancestor 'cwealm' meant death, slaughter, or plague - a far cry from today's mild twinge of conscience.
Word origin
Probably from Old English 'cwealm' meaning 'death, disaster, plague'; the sense softened over centuries from physical sickness to a passing pang of conscience.
Remember it
A QUALM is a QUiet ALarM in your conscience - listen for the QU-AL letters.
A little poem
Hand on the door, almost out-
then the small cold word arrives:
are you sure, are you sure, are you sure.
tercet
What it teaches
A qualm is conscience knocking before you've decided to answer; the danger is learning not to hear it.
Quick facts
What does QUALM mean?
An uneasy feeling of doubt, worry, or scruple, especially about one's conduct.
Is QUALM a valid word?
Yes — QUALM is one of the answer words in Wordul, the daily word game.
How many letters is QUALM?
QUALM has 5 letters and 1 syllable.
Where does QUALM come from?
Probably from Old English 'cwealm' meaning 'death, disaster, plague'; the sense softened over centuries from physical sickness to a passing pang of conscience.
What can QUALM teach us?
A qualm is conscience knocking before you've decided to answer; the danger is learning not to hear it.
How players do
Be the first to solve it.