self-reproach
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of self-reproach
First recorded in 1770–80
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Young Hamlet, the prince of Denmark, is burdened with self-reproach, while old King Lear suffers from narcissism, vanity and madness.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 9, 2026
“The play grew out of the related self-reproach about seeing my life as a charmed life,” Stoppard said during our long conversation.
From Washington Post • Sep. 29, 2022
Perhaps it was easier to give in to the sea than to the self-reproach of allowing it to get the better of me.
From The Guardian • Mar. 23, 2021
Her Diana needs only the twinge of an eyebrow to register doubt or self-reproach, only a knowing smile and a muttered “We won’t be doing that today” to bring a gun-toting robber to his knees.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 15, 2020
At this point he had nothing to do but wait, and overwhelmed with self-reproach and worry, he began to creep and crawl over everything: walls, furniture, and ceiling,.
From "The Metamorphosis" by Franz Kafka
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
