humiliating
Americanadjective
Other Word Forms
- humiliatingly adverb
- self-humiliating adjective
- unhumiliating adjective
- unhumiliatingly adverb
Etymology
Origin of humiliating
First recorded in 1750–60; humiliat(e) + -ing 2
Explanation
When something humiliating happens to you, it makes you feel embarrassed and ashamed. Your humiliating haircut might force you to wear a stocking cap to work. Something that humbles you and makes you feel foolish is humiliating: it's humiliating to sing your song for the school talent show in the wrong key, and it's even more humiliating when the audience laughs. Admitting defeat in a competition or battle is often described as humiliating, as are most kinds of public embarrassment. The noun humiliation came first, from the same root as humble, the Latin humilis, "lowly, humble," and literally, "on the ground."
Vocabulary lists containing humiliating
Fish in a Tree
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The Wednesday Wars
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Claudette Colvin: Twice Toward Justice
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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.
His humiliating treatment sent a signal that high-profile figures in the scam industry might be sacrificed to save Cambodia's reputation.
From BBC • Apr. 6, 2026
A humiliating incident in a pool surrounded by her repulsed classmates echoes an iconic scene from “Carrie,” with Ducournau crafting an analogy for traumatic adolescent rites of passage like menstruation.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 26, 2026
And now, without a single league win since last December, they are facing a humiliating emergency.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 14, 2026
"Our life is very humiliating here and we have very little fuel and food," says another Pakistani sailor, Zeeshan.
From BBC • Mar. 12, 2026
Coach had given me my uniform the day before, after humiliating me at the sports store.
From "Ghost" by Jason Reynolds
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.
