shameless

adjective

ˈshām-ləs How to pronounce shameless (audio)
Definition of shamelessnext
1
as in unabashed
not embarrassed or ashamed she's truly shameless in the seemingly endless self-promotion of herself

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ruthless
not sorry for having done wrong a shameless exploiter of impoverished workers in overseas sweatshops

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of shameless Vincent pursues Jimmy like a homing missile, but the young man is jittery and restless in his own skin up against Jimmy’s shameless self-assuredness. — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 20 May 2026 Unfortunately, the shameless tankers were our biggest winners from the lottery. — John Hollinger, New York Times, 10 May 2026 Democrats and political advocates have promised legal challenges and said repeatedly Tuesday that shameless partisanship is at play. — Bill Barrow, Twin Cities, 28 Apr. 2026 But this is a pretty shameless rip off of an internet classic. — Austin Perry Outkick, FOXNews.com, 24 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for shameless
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shameless
  1. unabashed
  2. ruthless
  3. proud
  4. cruel
  5. unashamed
  6. unrepentant
  7. unembarrassed
Adjective
  • David Andrew Morton as Lank Hawkins finds humor in the character’s unabashed anger.
    — Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 6 July 2026
  • One egregious example is his close relationship with Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr, whose unabashed attempts to gain Musk’s favor ultimately got him the job.
    — Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 18 June 2026
Definition of unabashed
Adjective
  • Communism’s pure economic theory is now rarely practiced anywhere — even if ruthless leaders in hybrid capitalist economies like China and Russia have retained the authoritarian iron fists of their predecessors.
    — Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 8 July 2026
  • Otherwise, Kail sticks closely to the template established for him, recreating every scene and sequence from the first movie with ruthless fidelity and adding essentially no departures of any significance.
    — Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 8 July 2026
Definition of ruthless
Adjective
  • So is the proud Iranian diaspora showing up en masse to mostly support Team Melli twice, in draws with New Zealand and Belgium.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2026
  • Andres Guardado, the former Deportivo La Coruna and Real Betis midfielder, was always proud to have 20 photos of Messi and him together on the pitch.
    — Charlotte Harpur, New York Times, 10 July 2026
Definition of proud
Adjective
  • The heat has become so unbearable in Japan that weather officials in April announced a new term for days when maximum temperatures exceed 104 degrees — kokushobi, meaning harsh or cruel heat, according to the Japan Times.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 6 July 2026
  • For thousands of Venezuelans, however, the lack of definitive answers has become one of the tragedy’s cruelest consequences.
    — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 3 July 2026
Definition of cruel
Adjective
  • Dodgers relief pitcher Blake Treinen is an outspoken Christian who has been unashamed to share his faith and conservative thoughts.
    — Jon Root OutKick, FOXNews.com, 6 June 2026
  • Dramatic currents, once suppressed, here bloom unashamed.
    — Russell Platt, New Yorker, 20 May 2026
Definition of unashamed
Adjective
  • The group has been unrepentant over the schism with Rome, ⁠saying Leo had failed to hear its concerns.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 5 July 2026
  • No longer is Cady an unrepentant rapist whom the lawyer Sam sent away, horrified by Cady’s violence and concerned about what men like Cady could do to Bowden’s own teenage daughter.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 26 June 2026
Definition of unrepentant
Adjective
  • The passions are big and unembarrassed.
    — Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 1 June 2026
  • The Wendy Eisenberg of Wendy Eisenberg is newly unafraid of love songs, or at least unembarrassed by their proclamations.
    — Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 9 Apr. 2026
Definition of unembarrassed

Browse Nearby Words

shameful
shameless
shamelessness
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Shameless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shameless. Accessed 13 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on shameless

Nglish: Translation of shameless for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 10
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
banana-mirrored
Contradictory Words Quiz Pick out which word means one thing…and the opp...
See All