abashed

1 of 2

adjective

ə-ˈbasht How to pronounce abashed (audio)
Synonyms of abashed
: made to feel uncomfortable, disconcerted, or embarrassed by something that has happened or been done or said
I stood back, abashed, wondering what I'd done wrong …—Paula Fox

abashed

2 of 2

past tense and past participle of abash

Examples of abashed in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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Adjective
This journey culminated in the 2018 production at Glyndebourne, which accomplished the feat of finally reducing (most of) the London critics to abashed admiration. — Russell Platt, New Yorker, 20 May 2026 Privacy concerns cause abashed feeling in Silicon Valley Zuckerberg's potential retort comes after Apple's Cook made comments at the end of March in an interview with Recode's Kara Swisher and MSNBC's Chris Hayes. — Chris Ciaccia, Fox News, 11 Apr. 2018 Their reactions varied, from unimpressed to abashed and pained — all of them uncomfortable. — Cara Buckley, New York Times, 8 Jan. 2018

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English abasshed, from past participle of abaissen, abaschen "to abash"

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of abashed was in the 14th century

Rhymes for abashed

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Browse Nearby Words

abash
abashed
Abashev
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Cite this Entry

“Abashed.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/abashed. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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