as in to embarrass
to throw into a state of self-conscious distress
felt terribly abashed when she walked into the wrong hotel room
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Recent Examples of abash
Here, furious parents throw open the cupboard to reveal their daughter’s abashed lover, as younger children look on wide-eyed and the family dog prepares to attack.
—
Susan Delson, WSJ, 20 June 2018
Bloom called him out, and the abashed Harris apologized.
—Christina Schoellkopf, latimes.com, 15 June 2018
Not easily abashed by body-shamers, Teigen has publicly posted next-to-naked topless photos in the past.
—Megan Decker, Harper's BAZAAR, 22 May 2018
Hefner was good-natured but rather abashed, diffident, and shy.
—Jeanie Pyun, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Oct. 2017
Peverelli seemed slightly abashed at the images’ potential elevation from commerce to art.
—Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 22 May 2017
But there is also a sort of confused, abashed one, often ironic, that acknowledges a problem and tries to work through a particularly American obliviousness.
—Jill McDonough, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2017
Susan Delson, WSJ, 20 June 2018
Bloom called him out, and the abashed Harris apologized.
—Christina Schoellkopf, latimes.com, 15 June 2018
Not easily abashed by body-shamers, Teigen has publicly posted next-to-naked topless photos in the past.
—Megan Decker, Harper's BAZAAR, 22 May 2018
Hefner was good-natured but rather abashed, diffident, and shy.
—Jeanie Pyun, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Oct. 2017
Peverelli seemed slightly abashed at the images’ potential elevation from commerce to art.
—Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 22 May 2017
But there is also a sort of confused, abashed one, often ironic, that acknowledges a problem and tries to work through a particularly American obliviousness.
—Jill McDonough, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for abash
Verb
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You’re locked in a cage with another human, that wants to beat the s*** out of you, embarrass you in front of millions of people.—
Sarah Shephard,
New York Times,
15 May 2026
-
The Sixers were embarrassed by the Knicks 144-114 in Game 4 in front of a New York-heavy crowd in South Philadelphia.—
Tom Dougherty,
CBS News,
12 May 2026
Verb
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Winners are chosen by a mix of votes from the two, translated into points by a system confusing even to Eurovision fans.—
Jill Lawless,
Chicago Tribune,
16 May 2026
-
Cassidy complained Friday that the new primary system enacted last year was confusing voters by requiring them to ask for a partisan ballot instead of the previous all-party primary that had been in place.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
15 May 2026
Verb
-
The Pistons’ defense is swarming and flustering the Cavs.—
Zach Harper,
New York Times,
8 May 2026
-
This comes up every few years, and everyone gets all flustered every few years.—
Zach Dean OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The abruptness is disconcerting but can be overcome by learning the pedal’s nuances.—
James Raia,
Mercury News,
1 May 2026
-
Other content, however, could be so disconcerting that it is assumed never to produce meaningful debate, and news outlets (and other platforms) need to make difficult decisions on how to identify and remove such content.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
22 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Yet in other ways, Koepp was rattled by that monster success.—
Darryn King,
Vanity Fair,
19 May 2026
-
Two Game 7 victories for Cleveland tells me this team is not going to get rattled.—
Tony Jones,
New York Times,
18 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Abash.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/abash. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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