embarrassment
Americannoun
-
the state of being embarrassed; disconcertment; abashment.
- Synonyms:
- discomposure
-
an act or instance of embarrassing.
-
something that embarrasses.
-
an overwhelmingly excessive amount; overabundance.
an embarrassment of riches.
-
the state of being in financial difficulties.
-
Medicine/Medical. impairment of functioning associated with disease.
respiratory embarrassment.
noun
-
the state of being embarrassed
-
something that embarrasses
-
a financial predicament
-
an excessive amount; superfluity
Synonym Usage
See shame.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of embarrassment
From the French word embarrassement, dating back to 1670–80. See embarrass, -ment
Explanation
When you feel embarrassment, you are self-conscious or ashamed. Embarrassment might keep you from wearing your Statue of Liberty Halloween costume in public. Something that makes you blush — like when ten people rush up to tell you how great your tuba solo was or realizing that you left the house in your pajama bottoms — causes you embarrassment. The person or thing that makes you feel awkward and ashamed can also be described as an embarrassment. To avoid embarrassment, remember to double the r's and s's when you spell embarrassment.
Vocabulary lists containing embarrassment
Emotions on Display
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Much Ado: Synonyms for "Many"
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"One Crazy Summer" by Rita Williams-Garcia, List 1
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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.
And even now, at such a young age, he warns, he has seen signs of anxiety and embarrassment in children as young as seven or eight years old who are displaying symptoms of cosmeticorexia.
From BBC • Jun. 6, 2026
Growing up in a south Asian family in Leicester, Ranvia remembers the embarrassment she felt at not being able to dress the same way as her high school friends.
From BBC • May 22, 2026
Moreover, the exchange’s acquisition of Athens Exchange Group “is now turning into an embarrassment of riches,” with the exchange likely driving revenues for the group’s equity markets division, the analysts write.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 21, 2026
Despite his public embarrassment and supposed fall-off, he’s still the most-streamed rapper on Earth.
From Salon • May 21, 2026
The loss of the Mona Lisa was a national embarrassment, and everyone in power was trying to get back to Paris—they’d all fled in the August heat.
From "The Mona Lisa Vanishes" by Nicholas Day
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.
