Word family noun shame shamefulness shamelessness adjective ashamed ≠ unashamed shameful shameless verb shame adverb shamefully ≠ shamelessly
From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishshameshame1 /ʃeɪm/ ●●● S2 noun 1 → it’s a shame/what a shame etc2 [uncountable]ASHAMED the feeling you have when you feel guilty and embarrassed because you, or someone who is close to you, have done something wrong He felt a deep sense of shame. Maria blushed with shame. To her shame (=it made her feel ashamed), she gained back all the weight she’d lost. He’s brought shame on the whole family.hang/bow your head in shame (=look down, or feel like you should look down, because you feel so ashamed) I bow my head in shame when I think of how I treated her. There’s no shame in (=it should not make you feel ashamed) saying ‘I don’t know.’3 [uncountable]ASHAMED the ability to feel shame How could you do such a thing? Have you no shame?4 → shame on you/him/them etc5 → put somebody/something to shameTHESAURUSshame the feeling you have when you feel guilty and embarrassed because you, or someone who is close to you, have done something wrongShe never overcame the shame of having abandoned her children.He remembered his angry words with a deep sense of shame.Following the scandal, Garrison resigned in shame.humiliation a feeling of shame and embarrassment because you have been made to look weak or stupid in front of other peopleWhat really upset me was the humiliation of having to ask her for money.He suffered the humiliation of defeat in the first round of the competition.dishonour British English, dishonor American English formal the loss of other people’s respect because you have done something bad, or you have been unsuccessfulHis comments have brought shame and dishonour on him and his profession.There is no dishonour in failure when you have done everything you possibly can to succeed. stigma the feeling that other people in society disapprove of you because of something that has happened to you, or because you feel different from most other people in some way – used especially when this seems unfair and unreasonableEven when someone has been found innocent of a crime, the stigma often remains.At first I found the stigma of being unemployed very difficult to cope with.In many countries there is still a strong social stigma attached to homosexuality.great shamedisgrace a complete loss of people’s respect because you have done something very bad and shockingHis actions brought disgrace on the family.The players were sent home in disgrace after admitting taking drugs.Garton killed himself because he could not bear the disgrace of being charged with corruption.ignominy formal a feeling of great shame and embarrassment because you have been made to look weak or stupid – a very formal useThe team suffered the ignominy of losing five games in a row.She hoped to avoid the ignominy of having to appear in court. Examples from the Corpus
shame• That is why few people never swear, and it would be a shame if more were to join them.• It's a shame we can't vote for it.• It's a shame, son.• What a shame Gerry Britton collected the only booking for celebrating Jamieson's goal over-zealously.• Some girls feel that refusing their parents' choice of husband will bring shame on their family.• Most of all, there is caustic shame for my own stupidity.• He was in the House at the time, so he should hang his head in shame.• Following the scandal, Garrison resigned in shame.• The next day I remembered how drunk I'd been , and almost died of shame.• Voting through cuts in benefits to the poorest people is a matter of shame for all of us.• As he left the house, Mungo felt a pang of shame at telling Alice a lie.• She remembered her angry words with a deep sense of shame.• But the threat was also psychological: what fired their hatred, in some cases, was their sense of shame.• Too many women are taught to feel guilt or shame about sex.• She never overcame the shame of having abandoned her children.• "Please don't tell my dad about this, " he said, blushing with shame.brought shame on• Their lawyer said they'd brought shame on the whole hunting world.• Mitigating, Howe's solicitor said he had suffered domestic problems and the incident had brought shame on his family.• You've brought shame on this family.Have you no shame• But what a start in life for a lovely little girl. Have they no shame? - P. Davies, Ipswich.shameshame2 verb [transitive] 1 ASHAMEDto make someone feel ashamed It shames me to say it, but I lied. He felt shamed and humiliated by the treatment he had received.2 → shame somebody into doing something3 to be so much better than someone else that you make them seem bad or feel embarrassed Their training record shamed other companies.4 to make someone feel they have lost all honour and respect She had shamed her family name (=done something that made her family lose honour).→ See Verb tableExamples from the Corpus
shame• This time she had to fight back or be utterly shamed.• I followed them in, shamed by the fearlessness of people half my height.• Because of this, the dogwood felt shamed deeply grieved that it should have been put to such a cruel purpose.• It shamed him and made him shrink inside his overcoat.• It shamed him to have to ask Jan for help.• Erlich remembered his face from the network news, bleak and uncompromising and shamed, when the announcement was made.Origin shame1 Old English scamu 