n. 1 embarrassment, humiliation, mortification, chagrin, ignominy, shamefacedness, loss of face, abashment Watts felt abysmal shame at being discovered stealing from petty cash 2 disgrace, ignominy, dishonour, disrepute, degradation, opprobrium, vilification, calumniation, infamy, obloquy, odium, contempt, scandal, denigration, loss of face, defamation, discredit, disesteem, disfavour, derogation, disparagement To think that one knight's single act of cowardice in 1249 could have brought such shame to all his descendants 3 pity, calamity, disaster, catastrophe; outrage What a shame that Gerry failed the exam! 4 humility, modesty, (sense of) decency or decorum or propriety, respectability, decorousness, diffidence, shyness, coyness, prudishness, timidity, shamefacedness The people who wear bathing suits like that obviously have no shame at all 5 put to shame. a surpass, eclipse, outclass, overshadow, cast into the shade, outdo, outstrip, outshine, show up Cochrane put his opponents to shame when they failed to score a single point against him b See 8, below.
v. 6 embarrass, humiliate, mortify, humble, chagrin, disconcert, discountenance, put down, bring down, abash, chasten, Colloq bring (someone) down a peg, suppress, subdue He hated the teacher because she had shamed him in front of his friends 7 coerce, force, drive, bully, push; embarrass, humiliate, mortify, humble The other boys shamed him into admitting that he had done it 8 disgrace, embarrass, dishonour, scandalize, calumniate, degrade, debase, defame, discredit, stigmatize; smear, blacken, stain, taint, besmirch, tarnish I am sure, son, that nothing you ever do would shame the family or me