stig ‧ ma /ˈstɪɡmə/ BrE AmE noun
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: 'mark, mark burned on the skin' , from Greek , from stizein 'to tattoo' ]
1 . [countable usually singular, uncountable] a strong feeling in society that being in a particular situation or having a particular illness is something to be ashamed of
the stigma of alcoholism/mental illness etc
The stigma of alcoholism makes it difficult to treat.
There is a social stigma attached to single parenthood.
In the US, smoking carries a stigma.
2 . [countable] technical the top of the centre part of a flower that receives the ↑ pollen which allows it to form new seeds
• • •
THESAURUS
▪ shame the feeling you have when you feel guilty and embarrassed because you, or someone who is close to you, have done something wrong:
She never overcame the shame of having abandoned her children.
|
He remembered his angry words with a deep sense of shame.
|
Following the scandal, Garrison resigned in shame.
▪ humiliation a feeling of shame and embarrassment because you have been made to look weak or stupid in front of other people:
What really upset me was the humiliation of having to ask her for money.
|
He suffered the humiliation of defeat in the first round of the competition.
▪ dishonour British English , dishonor American English formal the loss of other people’s respect because you have done something bad, or you have been unsuccessful:
His comments have brought shame and dishonour on him and his profession.
|
There is no dishonour in failure when you have done everything you possibly can to succeed.
▪ stigma the feeling that other people in society disapprove of you because of something that has happened to you, or because you feel different from most other people in some way – used especially when this seems unfair and unreasonable:
Even when someone has been found innocent of a crime, the stigma often remains.
|
At first I found the stigma of being unemployed very difficult to cope with.
|
In many countries there is still a strong social stigma attached to homosexuality.