embarrassing
Britishadjective
Other Word Forms
- embarrassingly adverb
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.
John, surrounded by patient, understanding friends and loved ones, tries to maintain as normal a life as possible, but rarely does more than a minute or two go by without a sudden, embarrassing outburst.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 23, 2026
Publishing them means that other people can read and scrutinize them, and mock the justices when they write illogical, unsupported or embarrassing opinions.
From Salon • Apr. 22, 2026
Humour can be a powerful tool, and so I've turned my experiences into a comedy show about life with an embarrassing surname.
From BBC • Apr. 18, 2026
We dislike insecure bellicosity not just because it’s embarrassing, but because it is ineffective.
From Slate • Apr. 13, 2026
He had a wife we will not name, because it would be embarrassing to her family.
From "Everything Sad Is Untrue" by Daniel Nayeri
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.
