self-questioning

noun

self-ques·​tion·​ing ˌself-ˈkwes-chə-niŋ How to pronounce self-questioning (audio)
-ˈkwesh-
Synonyms of self-questioningnext
: examination of one's own actions and motives

Examples of self-questioning in a Sentence

so consumed with self-questioning that he was virtually paralyzed by self-doubt
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
This majestic sequence delivers a lifetime’s outpouring of love’s inadequacies and frustrations, of grief and regret, of gratitude along with candid acceptance of loss, and of self-questioning that never shakes the foundations of the family—her ferocious commitment to the children. Richard Brody, New Yorker, 12 June 2026 After long periods of grief, reflection and painful self-questioning, most of the families interviewed by The Charlotte Observer no longer seem interested in reducing their children’s deaths to any one thing. Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 4 June 2026 But users can instruct it to be tentative, hesitant, self-questioning or even deliberately clumsy. Chris Reed, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1621, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of self-questioning was in 1621

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Self-questioning.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/self-questioning. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.

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