chagrin

noun cha·grin \ shə-ˈgrin \

|Updated on: 10 Jul 2018

Examples: chagrin in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of chagrin

: disquietude or distress of mind caused by humiliation, disappointment, or failure

See chagrin defined for English-language learners

See chagrin defined for kids

chagrin was our Word of the Day on 12/31/2006. Hear the podcast!

Examples of chagrin in a Sentence

As many a woman has learned to her chagrin, pathological liars are brilliant at deception. —Katha Pollitt, Nation, 16 June 2003
In World War I, to his chagrin, Eisenhower again found himself on the sidelines, performing training duties stateside while Pershing, MacArthur, and Patton earned their battle ribbons. —U.S. News & World Report, 16 Mar. 1998
In 1628, to the chagrin of Governor William Bradford, the Pilgrims erected an 80-foot Maypole, danced around it, drank beer, and sang. —E. C. Krupp, Sky & Telescope, May 1994
Imagine my chagrin when a whiz kid from Dayton made all A's in the first quarter while I made two B's and a C+. —John Hope Franklin, Race and History, 1989
The fact that he'd been unable to attend the funeral was a source of chagrin for Ted.
She had gained five pounds over the winter, much to her chagrin.
He decided to get a tattoo, to the chagrin of his parents.

Recent Examples of chagrin from the Web

The ubiquitous coffeehouse giant had been eyeing the corner of Cross and Hanover streets as a spot to open a new franchise, much to the chagrin of some North End shop owners, who worried the chain would weaken the neighborhood’s historic charm.

— danny mcdonald, BostonGlobe.com, "Boston’s Walsh opposes North End Starbucks proposal," 6 July 2018
The Carmel school board voted tonight to relocate the Orchard Park Elementary School 5 miles away and to rebuild Carmel Elementary School at its current site, much to the chagrin of a group of about a dozen local parents in the audience.

— faith e. pinho, Indianapolis Star, "Carmel school board votes for two new elementary schools, to parents' frustration," 25 June 2018
To the chagrin of many, Baltimore didn’t make the change official until April 24, after parents and teachers had already signed up for camps, booked vacations or made other plans for a summer break that was, at that point, less than two months away.

— talia richman, baltimoresun.com, "'We’re all just wondering why we’re here': Extra school days lead to empty classrooms in Maryland," 19 June 2018
Amazon isn’t the only tech company working with law enforcement agencies to the chagrin of stakeholders.

— hallie detrick, Fortune, "First the ACLU Asked Amazon to Stop Selling Facial Recognition Tech to Police. Now Investors Have Doubts Too," 19 June 2018
However, nearly two years after the referendum, the local Borough Council has failed to secure a bid on the license, which, to the chagrin of local restaurant owners, Council set at a minimum price of $550,000.

— will feuer, Philly.com, "Historically dry Pitman looks to sell its first liquor license, but some say the price is too high," 13 June 2018
Meanwhile, Trump explicitly promised not to touch entitlements, much to the chagrin of the rest of the field.

— jeff stein, chicagotribune.com, "Howard Schultz ignoring 2016's lessons, say Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton alumni," 6 June 2018
The bill would eliminate some popular student aid programs and impose restrictions on others, while dialing back regulations on for-profit colleges, much to the chagrin of Democrats.

— danielle douglas-gabriel, Washington Post, "Higher education reform stalled in the Senate, while House GOP charges ahead," 1 June 2018
To the chagrin of many Bell Pottinger employees, however, the firm’s efforts to reduce debt were felt most keenly in its lower echelons: employees say that their compensation was mediocre.

— ed caesar, The New Yorker, "The Reputation-Laundering Firm That Ruined Its Own Reputation," 25 May 2018

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

Did You Know?

Chagrin comes from French, in which it means "grief," "sorrow," or essentially the same thing as our "chagrin," and in which it is also an adjective meaning "sad." Some etymologists have linked this "chagrin" with another French chagrin, meaning "rough leather or "rough skin." Supposedly, the rough leather used to rub, polish, or file became a metaphor in French for agitating situations. English-speakers have also adopted the leathery "chagrin" into our language but have altered the spelling to "shagreen."

Origin and Etymology of chagrin

French, from chagrin sad

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1681

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

chagrin

verb cha·grin \ shə-ˈgrin \

Definition of chagrin

chagrined play \-ˈgrind\; chagrining play \-ˈgri-niŋ\

transitive verb

: to vex or unsettle by disappointing or humiliating

he was chagrined to learn that his help was not needed

Recent Examples of chagrin from the Web

They have been particularly chagrined by his circumspect attitude toward special counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of potential ties between Trump’s campaign and Russian operatives during the campaign.

— washington post, BostonGlobe.com, "Gerard Baker replaced as editor of Wall Street Journal," 5 June 2018
Lawler was impressed by the Ramones' farming know-how and chagrined by the loss of their 5-acre livelihood.

— john tuohy, Indianapolis Star, "Nation's largest urban farm nears opening in Fishers with a little help from Puerto Rico," 22 May 2018
People with disabilities and advocates for disability rights have been particularly chagrined by one image making the rounds on social media: an upright man silhouetted against a backdrop of stars, with an empty wheelchair in the foreground.

— jessica roy, latimes.com, "Erasing Stephen Hawking's disability erases an important part of who he was," 16 Mar. 2018
Free-trade advocates in the U.S., however, were chagrined at the split-screen image of Washington’s allies signing a new trade pact while the American president unveils new tariffs.

— william mauldin, WSJ, "Pacific Trade Pact Sets Sail Without the U.S. on Board," 8 Mar. 2018
There were announcement stunners, artful baseball cap reveals, apparent intra-family discord, flips that thrilled one program’s supporters and chagrined another’s.

— chris johnson, SI.com, "National Signing Day 2018: Winners and Losers From the Fax Machine Frenzy," 7 Feb. 2018
Other investment banks based in Moscow were chagrined and suspected that Deutsche owed its success to its alliance with Russian state interests.

— luke harding, Newsweek, "Is Donald Trump’s Dark Russian Secret Hiding in Deutsche Bank’s Vaults?," 21 Dec. 2017
Many in the foreign policy establishment were chagrined at Kushner’s comments to a group of congressional interns on July 31.

— tracy wilkinson, chicagotribune.com, "Kushner heads to Israel for latest attempt at peace deal," 22 Aug. 2017
Whoever decided to start shopping Breaux or leaked the news that the club was poised to trade him before waiting on the second opinion should be chagrined.

— john roach, NOLA.com, "The Saints need a Breaux hug, LSU's QB questions, and more: Sports' weekly highlights," 19 Aug. 2017