ashamed

adjective \ ə-ˈshāmd \

|Updated on: 14 Jul 2018

Definition of ashamed

1 a : feeling shame, guilt, or disgrace

She felt ashamed for hitting her brother.

You should be ashamed of yourself.

Losing is nothing to be ashamed of.

He was deeply ashamed of his behavior.

b : feeling inferior or unworthy

2 : reluctant or unwilling to do something because of shame or embarrassment

I was ashamed to be seen with him.

I'm not ashamed to admit that I don't know the answer.

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ashamedly

play \-ˈshā-məd-lē\ adverb

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Recent Examples of ashamed from the Web

Our coaches, our support staff, and our players, especially, have nothing to be ashamed of.

— nick moyle, San Antonio Express-News, "UT eliminated from College World Series by Florida," 20 June 2018
Winfrey addressed that on her show, giving a globally visible voice to so many other black women who had been ashamed of their appearance.

— allison keyes, Smithsonian, "Oprah’s Undeniable Influence on American History Recognized in New Smithsonian Exhibition," 8 June 2018
Schwartz, of course, has little to be ashamed about.

— jeff mclane, Philly.com, "Jim Schwartz is still with Eagles, but how long can they keep him? | Jeff McLane," 1 June 2018
People who are suffering may be ashamed to reach out.

— erin allday, SFChronicle.com, "Experts: Suicides of Bourdain, Spade may be opportunity to reach out," 8 June 2018
There’s an implication that victims should feel ashamed of what happened, their identities hidden, that no one wants to hear about something that awful.

— heidi stevens, chicagotribune.com, "At Lit Fest, conversations about love, healing and surviving horrific violence," 1 June 2018
As in the early days of HIV/AIDS, many Americans are still ashamed to speak of the condition.

— sandeep kapoor, STAT, "‘Angels in America’ again: It’s time to humanize addiction," 1 June 2018
The only person who should ever be ashamed in a domestic abuse incident is the abuser.

— britni danielle, Essence.com, "Former Playboy Model Jumps To Her Death With 7-Year-Old Son," 21 May 2018
Gabriela is grateful for his understanding and help, but feels ashamed.

— leyla santiago and khushbu shah, CNN, "Gabriela's quest for safety: Pregnant mom gets her boys through sickness, a trash train and 3,000 miles," 27 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'ashamed.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of ashamed

Middle English, from Old English āscamod, past participle of āscamian to shame, from ā- (perfective prefix) + scamian to shame — more at abide, shame

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

in the meaning defined at sense 1a

See Words from the same year