compunction vs guilt

compunction

noun
  • A pricking of conscience or a feeling of regret, especially one which is slight or fleeting. 

guilt

noun
  • The regret of having done wrong. 

  • Responsibility for wrongdoing. 

  • The state of having been found guilty or admitted guilt in legal proceedings. 

verb
  • To cause someone to feel guilt, particularly in order to influence their behaviour. 

How often have the words compunction and guilt occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )