English
Etymology
From Old English abaissen, abaisshen, abashen, from Old French esbahir, formed from es + bair "to astonish".
Known cognates: French ébahir "to astonish".
Pronunciation
RP:
audio|en-us-abash.ogg|Audio (US)
Verb
en-verb|abash|es
- transitive To make ashamed; to embarrass; to destroy the self-possession of; to confuse or confound, as by exciting suddenly a consciousness of guilt, mistake, or inferiority; to put to shame; to disconcert; to discomfit.
#* He was a man whom no check could abash. - Macaulay.
- intransitive obsolete To lose self-possession; to become ashamed.
Synonyms
confuse
confound
disconcert
shame
humiliate
embarrass
Usage notes
Of abash, confuse, confound: Abash is a stronger word than confuse, but not so strong as confound.
- We are abashed when struck either with sudden shame or with a humbling sense of inferiority; as, Peter was abashed by the look of his Master. So a modest youth is abashed in the presence of those who are greatly his superiors.
- We are confused when, from some unexpected or startling occurrence, we lose clearness of thought and self-possession. Thus, a witness is often confused by a severe cross-examination; a timid person is apt to be confused in entering a room full of strangers.
- We are confounded when our minds are overwhelmed, as it were, by something wholly unexpected, amazing, dreadful, etc., so that we have nothing to say. Thus, a criminal is usually confounded at the discovery of his guilt.
::* Satan stood Awhile as mute, confounded what to say. - John Milton
Derived terms
abashed
abashedly
abashedness
abashless
abashment
Translations
trans-top|to make ashamed, to embarrass
Dutch: beschamen
Finnish: saattaa häpeilemään, saattaa hämille
French: confondre
German: beschämen
Interlingua: confunder
Japanese: �����(�������, roubaisaseru)
trans-mid
Macedonian: зв�н�ва (zbunuva)
Norwegian: gjøre skamfull
Portuguese: envergonhar, confundir
Spanish: confundir
trans-bottom
Translations to be checked
checktrans
ttbc|Vietnamese: là m b�i r�i, là m lúng túng, là m lu�ng cu�ng
Shorthand
Gregg (Version: Centennial,Series 90, DJS,Simplified,Anniversary,Pre-Anniversary): a - b - a - sh
am:abash
ar:abash
fa:abash
fr:abash
it:abash
ta:abash
vi:abash
tr:abash
uk:abash
zh:abash
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