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conscientious objector

conscientious objector

11 7.3
A person who refuses to join the army for moral or religious reasons
  • noun
  • /ˌkɒnʃiˈɛnʃəs əbˈdʒɛktər/
translation icon : objetor de conciencia
  • During the war, he declared himself a conscientious objector due to his moral beliefs.
  • conscientious objector provision
  • conscientious objector service
  • conscientious objectors to war

And even though he's a pacifist, even though he was was a conscientious objector in the previous war, Stapleton says we need to fight the Nazis.

Examples

  • Taking advantage of loopholes in the military draft designed for Quakers, they secured official recognition as conscientious objectors.

    Academic text (1998)
  • The civic duty exception includes mandatory participation in public works projects, military service, and alternative service for conscientious objectors.

    Academic text (1994)
  • A lot of people are conscientious objectors.

  • I had a brother who was a conscientious objector.

  • I was a conscientious objector.

  • Canada has a proud history of providing refuge to conscientious objectors to war.

    Blog text (33)
  • You see, Private Doss is a conscientious objector.

  • I didn't go because I was a conscientious objector, and I was prepared to go to jail rather than go.

  • I had applied for conscientious objector status and was instructed to join work camp No. 33 at Fort Collins, Colorado.

    Academic text (1992)
  • The personal morality of the Amish and Mennonites, which leads them to conscientious objector status, is thus recognized in law.

    Blog text (1)

Synonyms

CO
vsconscientious objector
37 8.2

A person who refuses to join the army or fight because of their beliefs

is the same idea expressed as the full formal term
conchie
vsconscientious objector
  • Offensive
1 9.9

A person who refuses to fight in the army because of moral or religious beliefs

is the neutral formal phrase rather than slang

Antonyms

3.9

A person who fights in battles as part of an army

61 5.6

A person who takes part in fighting, often a soldier in a war

Surface Forms

Morphology

conscientious + objector

The phrase is partly compositional: 'conscientious' indicates actions guided by conscience and 'objector' denotes someone who refuses or protests, so a learner who knows both words can infer 'someone who objects for moral reasons'. However, the conventionalized, specific sense referring especially to refusal of military service or bearing arms and subtle differences in the meaning of 'conscientious' make the full, legally/socially specific meaning less predictable for a B1 learner.

Etymology

Conscientious objector The noun conscientious objector comes from the idea of a person who is conscientious (guided by a strong inner sense of right and wrong) and so becomes an objector to fighting. So, it means 'a person who refuses to join the army or fight because of moral or religious reasons'.