Guilt is the uncomfortable feeling you get when you've done something wrong or hurt someone, even if no one else knows about it. It's that tight knot in your stomach when you remember being mean to your little brother, or the nagging voice in your head after you broke your promise to help a friend.

Guilt serves an important purpose: it's your conscience telling you that your actions didn't match your values. When you feel guilty about copying someone's homework, that feeling is reminding you that you believe in honesty. When you feel guilty about excluding a classmate from a game, it's because you know kindness matters to you.

This feeling differs from shame, which is about feeling bad about who you are. Guilt is about feeling bad about what you did, which means you can do something about it. You might feel guilty about lying to your parents, but that guilt can motivate you to tell the truth next time and make things right by apologizing.

Some people talk about guilt-tripping someone, which means making another person feel guilty to manipulate them into doing what you want. And when someone is found guilty in court, it means they've been proven responsible for breaking the law.