embarrass
to cause confusion and shame to; make uncomfortably self-conscious; disconcert; abash: His bad table manners embarrassed her.
to make difficult or intricate, as a question or problem; complicate.
to put obstacles or difficulties in the way of; impede: The motion was advanced in order to embarrass the progress of the bill.
to beset with financial difficulties; burden with debt: The decline in sales embarrassed the company.
to become disconcerted, abashed, or confused.
Origin of embarrass
1synonym study For embarrass
Other words for embarrass
Other words from embarrass
- em·bar·rassed·ly [em-bar-uhst-lee, -uh-sid-lee], /ɛmˈbær əst li, -ə sɪd li/, adverb
- em·bar·rass·ing·ly, adverb
- pre·em·bar·rass, verb (used with object)
- un·em·bar·rassed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use embarrass in a sentence
Usually, it takes at least one full day in Cancun to do something embarrassing you’ll never live down.
One night in Cancun: Ted Cruz’s disastrous decision to go on vacation during Texas storm crisis | Ashley Parker | February 19, 2021 | Washington PostConvinced King was “the world’s most notorious liar,” the FBI director sought information that would embarrass King and induce him to step aside as leader of the civil rights movement.
The FBI's Surveillance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Was Relentless. But Its Findings Paint a Fuller Picture for Historians | Benjamin Hedin | January 18, 2021 | TimeSeveral Democrats, embarrassed by the entire process, joined with Republicans to pass a resolution denying that Congress, the courts or any tribunal could reverse the 1876 election results.
Ted Cruz’s proposed election commission can only hurt the country | Stuart MacKay | January 6, 2021 | Washington PostInstead, we are home, missing the good and the frustrating and weird parts of our families and creating new traditions with our children — ones that will undoubtedly later embarrass them.
At the end of an isolating year, even the embarrassing, frustrating, weird parts of family gatherings feel missed | Theresa Vargas | December 26, 2020 | Washington PostWe’ll continue to talk openly and learn more about female physiology and not treat it as something to be embarrassed by or ignored.
These Will Be the Biggest Health Trends of 2021 | Martin Fritz Huber | December 25, 2020 | Outside Online
I actually downloaded the app last summer and was embarrassed because none of my friends seemed to use it.
I was so embarrassed my face reddened but Lee kept it right up.
The Story Behind Lee Marvin’s Liberty Valance Smile | Robert Ward | January 3, 2015 | THE DAILY BEASTBut outsiders, generally, are embarrassed or appalled, and so are a growing number of locals.
I am not remotely embarrassed to relate he weighed just 9lb.
In particular, a video of an apparently inebriated Morgan has embarrassed supporters of the referendum.
Edna was a trifle embarrassed at being thus signaled out for the imperious little woman's favor.
The Awakening and Selected Short Stories | Kate ChopinShe was even meditating a retreat, inexplicably embarrassed, when an inner door opened and Lady Victoria entered.
Ancestors | Gertrude AthertonFrederick, embarrassed, thought his sister was carrying the jest too far.
Tobacco; Its History, Varieties, Culture, Manufacture and Commerce | E. R. Billings.Embarrassed and ashamed, she was obliged to confess that her knowledge of the language was confined to one quotation.
The Ladies' Book of Etiquette, and Manual of Politeness | Florence HartleyIt failed to secure the capital it sought and was seriously embarrassed throughout its three years' existence.
The Recent Revolution in Organ Building | George Laing Miller
British Dictionary definitions for embarrass
/ (ɪmˈbærəs) /
(also intr) to feel or cause to feel confusion or self-consciousness; disconcert; fluster
(usually passive) to involve in financial difficulties
archaic to make difficult; complicate
archaic to impede; obstruct; hamper
Origin of embarrass
1Derived forms of embarrass
- embarrassed, adjective
- embarrassedly, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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