- present participle of embarrass.
embarrassing
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Explanation
Use the adjective embarrassing to describe something that is shameful or humiliating. You probably have a few embarrassing stories that you'd rather not remember, but your siblings are always happy to bring them up at holidays. It's really embarrassing how many people misspell embarrassing. The word has two r's and two s's but you might forget and leave one of them out. Imagine how embarrassing it would be if you were winning the third grade spelling bee and got the word embarrassing wrong. You know everyone would be talking about it. How embarrassing!
Vocabulary lists containing embarrassing
Awkward Moments
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Schooled
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Neighborhood Odes
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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.
Part of Ferrell’s man-child trilogy with Adam McKay, the film follows a blowhard racecar driver as he works his way back to the winner’s circle following a dramatic and embarrassing wreck.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
For Farage, "while it's embarrassing for him to win against a dustbin, and not the mainstream parties, he will return as MP," said Catherine Barnard, a political expert at Cambridge University.
From Barron's ● Aug. 12, 2026
"People don't talk about having no friends a lot... I think it's still what people would consider embarrassing or a little taboo," she says.
From BBC ● Aug. 1, 2026
The latest incident follows several embarrassing episodes this season with the Giants, who through Thursday are 47-62 and 22 games behind the first-place Dodgers in the National League West.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 2026
“On the grounds that you’re prejudiced against my client because when she hacked the juvenile justice portal, she came across personal e-mails of yours that are embarrassing in nature.”
From "City Spies" by James Ponti
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.
