Conscience vs. Conscious
Sometimes in the English language, words are confused because their pronunciations and spellings are confusing. A word that sounds like it should be spelled one way is confused with another word that is actually spelled that way! Conscience and conscious are two words that are often confused for this reason. They sound very similar, and you may even think they should be spelled more alike than they actually are. But, they do have very different meanings.
Conscience is a noun that refers to the inner voice or inner feeling of guilt that causes us to choose the right or wrong course of action.
1. I would like to keep your secret, but my conscience won't allow me to lie to the teacher.
2. I don't think that evil people have a conscience.
3. The little boy took the gum, but he had an attack of conscience and decided to return it to the store.
Conscious is an adjective that refers to a state of being aware of something, alert, or awake.
1. That dog doesn't appear to be conscious-is he sleeping or playing dead?
2. Mrs. Helton was conscious of the raised hands, but she didn't call on us because she was trying to finish her explanation.
3. Were you even conscious of the fact that you made a mistake?
What is interesting about these two words-conscience and conscious-is that they both have to do with an awareness. Conscious is a physical or mental awareness; conscience is about moral awareness. It's important to be conscious of which awareness you mean!
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