1
a
: a painful emotion caused by consciousness of guilt, shortcoming, or impropriety
b
: the susceptibility to such emotion
have you no shame?
2
: a condition of humiliating disgrace or disrepute : ignominy
the shame of being arrested
3
a
: something that brings censure or reproach
b
: a cause of feeling shame
shamed; shaming
1
: to bring shame to : disgrace
shamed the family name
2
: to put to shame by outdoing
3
: to cause to feel shame
4
: to force by causing to feel guilty
shamed into confessing
Synonyms
Examples of shame in a Sentence
Noun
He felt shame for his lies.
How could you be so rude? Have you no shame?
Her crimes brought shame upon her family.
He had to endure the shame of being fired.
Verb
He was shamed by his behavior at the party.
shamed the family name with his conviction for embezzlement
Recent Examples on the Web
Katie Walsh, Twin Cities, 7 Nov. 2024
The shame and fear from that policy linger on, even generations later.
—Josh Becker, The Mercury News, 7 Nov. 2024
Anna Spiegel, Axios, 1 Oct. 2024
Instead of fighting or avoiding or shaming people on your team, build a culture of acceptance.
—Tarun Galagali, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for shame 
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Noun
The mechanics of the plot itself don’t quite hold up under scrutiny, which is a shame when the dialogue, performances and filmmaking craft are so tightly woven, moving in perfect sync.
—Katie Walsh, Twin Cities, 7 Nov. 2024
The shame and fear from that policy linger on, even generations later.
—Josh Becker, The Mercury News, 7 Nov. 2024
Verb
Armchair traffic cops are publicly shaming drivers who've racked up thousands of dollars in unpaid D.C. fines by posting their license plates and offenses on social media.
—Anna Spiegel, Axios, 1 Oct. 2024
Instead of fighting or avoiding or shaming people on your team, build a culture of acceptance.
—Tarun Galagali, Forbes, 4 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for shame
Dictionary Entries Near shame
Cite this Entry
“Shame.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/shame. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
shame
1 of 2 noun1
a
: a painful emotion caused by having done something wrong or improper
b
: ability to feel shame
have you no shame?
3
: something that brings disgrace or causes shame or strong regret
4
: something to be regretted : pity
it's a shame you'll miss the show
shame
2 of 2 verb
shamed; shaming
1
: to bring shame to : disgrace
2
: to cause to feel shame
3
: to force by causing to feel guilty
they were shamed into confessing
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