shame.
An uncomfortable or painful feeling due to recognition or consciousness of one's own impropriety or dishonor, or something being exposed that should have been kept private.
Meaning & usage
An uncomfortable or painful feeling due to recognition or consciousness of one's own impropriety or dishonor, or something being exposed that should have been kept private.
When I realized that I had hurt my friend, I felt deep shame.
The teenager couldn’t bear the shame of introducing his parents.
Something to regret.
It was a shame not to see the show after driving all that way.
Reproach incurred or suffered; dishonour; ignominy; derision.
The cause or reason of shame; that which brings reproach and ignominy.
That which is shameful and private, especially private parts.
The capacity to be ashamed, inhibiting one from brazen behaviour; due regard for one's own moral conduct and how one is perceived by others; restraint, moderation, decency.
Don't you have any shame?
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *skamō Proto-West Germanic *skamu Old English sċamu Middle English schame English shame From Middle English schame, from Old English sċamu, from Proto-West Germanic *skamu, from Proto-Germanic *skamō. Cognates *German Scham (“shame”) *German Low German Schaam (“shame, shamefacedness”) *Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, Swedish skam (“shame”) *Faroese skomm (“shame, dishonour”) *Icelandic skömm (“shame”) *Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌼𐌰 (skama, “shame”).
A cry of admonition for the subject of a speech, either to denounce the speaker or to agree with the speaker's denunciation of some person or matter; often used reduplicated, especially in political debates.
Ellipsis of what a shame; expressing disappointment or sympathy
Shame, you poor thing, you must be cold!
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *skamō Proto-West Germanic *skamu Old English sċamu Middle English schame English shame From Middle English schame, from Old English sċamu, from Proto-West Germanic *skamu, from Proto-Germanic *skamō. Cognates *German Scham (“shame”) *German Low German Schaam (“shame, shamefacedness”) *Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, Swedish skam (“shame”) *Faroese skomm (“shame, dishonour”) *Icelandic skömm (“shame”) *Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌼𐌰 (skama, “shame”).
Embarrassed and shy, particularly because one is the subject of attention.
Causing embarrassment or shyness.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Germanic *skamō Proto-West Germanic *skamu Old English sċamu Middle English schame English shame From Middle English schame, from Old English sċamu, from Proto-West Germanic *skamu, from Proto-Germanic *skamō. Cognates *German Scham (“shame”) *German Low German Schaam (“shame, shamefacedness”) *Danish, Norwegian Bokmål, Norwegian Nynorsk, Swedish skam (“shame”) *Faroese skomm (“shame, dishonour”) *Icelandic skömm (“shame”) *Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌼𐌰 (skama, “shame”).
To cause to feel shame.
I was shamed by the teacher's public disapproval.
To cover with reproach or ignominy; to dishonor; to disgrace.
To denounce as having done something shameful; to criticize with the intent or effect of causing a feeling of shame.
Stop shaming others about their food choices.
To drive or compel by shame.
The politician was shamed into resigning.
To feel shame, be ashamed.
To mock at; to deride.
Where this word comes from
From Middle English schamen, from Old English sċamian, from Proto-West Germanic *skamēn, from Proto-Germanic *skamāną. Cognates *Dutch schamen (“to be ashamed”) *German schämen (“to be ashamed or embarrassed, bashful”) *Danish, Norwegian Bokmål skamme (“to be ashamed”) *Icelandic skamma (“to scold”) *Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌰𐌼𐌰𐌽 (skaman, “to be ashamed”).
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.