remorsefulness

a feeling of responsibility for wrongdoing he was gnawed by an unrelenting remorsefulness for the pain that he had caused people Synonyms contriteness, contrition, penitence, regret, remorse, guilt, repentance, rue, self-reproach, shameRelated Words compunction, misgiving, prick, qualm, scruple; blame, culpability, fault; liability, rap, responsibility; chagrin, embarrassment; anguish, distress, grief, ruth, sadness, sorrow; bloodguilt, bloodguiltiness; apology, excuses, hand-wringing, mea culpaAntonyms impenitence, remorselessness