to make scruple
Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)
Scruple \Scru"ple\, n. [L. scrupulus a small sharp or pointed stone, the twenty-fourth part of an ounce, a scruple, uneasiness, doubt, dim. of scrupus a rough or sharp stone, anxiety, uneasiness; perh. akin to Gr. ? the chippings of stone, ? a razor, Skr. kshura: cf. F. scrupule.]
1.A weight of twenty grains; the third part of a dram. [1913 Webster]
2.Hence, a very small quantity; a particle. [1913 Webster]
I will not bate thee a scruple.— Shak.[1913 Webster]
3.Hesitation as to action from the difficulty of determining what is right or expedient; unwillingness, doubt, or hesitation proceeding from motives of conscience. [1913 Webster]
He was made miserable by the conflict between his tastes and his scruples.— Macaulay.[1913 Webster]
To make scruple, to hesitate from conscientious motives; to scruple. --Locke. [1913 Webster]