as in embarrassed
concerned with the way one is perceived by others
He used to feel self-conscious about his belly.
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Recent Examples of self-conscious
The images have become the site of a self-conscious meta-comedy about the consuming urge to post that afflicts a portion of the population.
—
Paul McAdory, Them., 9 Dec. 2025
Amid them all, Ian Edwards’s confidently unflappable work stands out as the least self-conscious about the meaning of life, but Edwards’s is every bit as thoughtful and well-crafted.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 3 Dec. 2025
In his sketches, even the most oddball figures—a focus-group participant with terrible ideas, a man struggling to back out of a parking lot—are self-conscious about their unpopularity.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 28 Nov. 2025
In the two weeks immediately after her operation, Evans felt too self-conscious of her healing wounds to leave the house.
—Leah Dolan, CNN Money, 27 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for self-conscious
Paul McAdory, Them., 9 Dec. 2025
Amid them all, Ian Edwards’s confidently unflappable work stands out as the least self-conscious about the meaning of life, but Edwards’s is every bit as thoughtful and well-crafted.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 3 Dec. 2025
In his sketches, even the most oddball figures—a focus-group participant with terrible ideas, a man struggling to back out of a parking lot—are self-conscious about their unpopularity.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 28 Nov. 2025
In the two weeks immediately after her operation, Evans felt too self-conscious of her healing wounds to leave the house.
—Leah Dolan, CNN Money, 27 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for self-conscious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for self-conscious
Adjective
-
Farhood enrolled at a local community college and worked multiple serving jobs, playing around with makeup and sharing images of just her eyes to a personal Instagram account — too embarrassed that her friends might find out about her hobby.—
Luke Chinman,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
-
But after his team was embarrassed in Ottawa, Sturm had a good feeling about is players.—
Steve Conroy,
Boston Herald,
29 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Rather than offering peace of mind from pest invasion, the chemical control process often leaves families feeling uneasy about what has been introduced so indiscriminately into their environment.—
Malana VanTyler,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Cuomo led early polls, buoyed by name recognition and a coalition of moderate Democrats uneasy with the party’s leftward drift.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
My seat is hard and uncomfortable.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Whoever dispatched that ambulance might be one of many employees at the Department of Emergency Communications who have felt uncomfortable, yelled at and trapped between their calling to help people and what several current and former dispatchers have called a hostile work environment.—
Kirsten Fiscus,
Nashville Tennessean,
6 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Self-conscious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/self-conscious. Accessed 7 Jan. 2026.
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