as in humiliating
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as in embarrassing
to throw into a state of self-conscious distress
was mortified by her children's atrocious manners
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of mortifying
Hannah Jackson,
Vogue,
2 July 2026
Iran got the United States to sign a document that even Americans described as degrading, mortifying, a total capitulation.
—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
18 June 2026
The second, a 2-1 home defeat, was mortifying.
—
George Caulkin,
New York Times,
14 May 2026
And what could be more mortifying than getting lower ratings than your mother?
—
Jessica Winter,
New Yorker,
7 May 2026
One particularly mortifying episode from the past haunts Hally.
—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2026
Even more fortunately, TJ also has a real, if mortifying, alibi.
—
Sophie Brookover,
Vulture,
12 Dec. 2025
The answer might be a mortifying surprise.
—
The Washington Post,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
28 Oct. 2025
The mortifying moment comes at a time when international tourism continues to rebound strongly despite global uncertainty.
—
Soo Kim,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Sep. 2025
Patt Morrison,
Los Angeles Times,
6 May 2026
Baby Reindeer was hardly a laugh riot, but mortifying humor is still humor and, with episodic running times in the 30-minute range, the show had a charging, unpredictable momentum.
—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Apr. 2026
The graduation ceremony and the reception afterward are cute and heartwarming for the grown-ups, bittersweet and mortifying for the kids, who skive off to smoke some of Ed’s high-test weed and have a little Texas Forever moment, toasting their enduring friendships.
—
Sophie Brookover,
Vulture,
27 Mar. 2026
Classmates saw the sign while riding by Goepper’s home on the school bus, mortifying the teenage Goepper.
—
Sean Gregory,
Time,
18 Feb. 2026
Ursula Lindsey The Norwegian writer Vigdis Hjorth has a gift for depicting painful, confusing, and mortifying relationships.
—
Joanna Walsh,
The New York Review of Books,
15 Nov. 2025
And that display from our fans was mortifying.
—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
There was once a time when a visible slip was considered a mortifying fashion faux pas.
—
Hannah Jackson,
Vogue,
2 July 2026
Iran got the United States to sign a document that even Americans described as degrading, mortifying, a total capitulation.
—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
18 June 2026
The second, a 2-1 home defeat, was mortifying.
—
George Caulkin,
New York Times,
14 May 2026
And what could be more mortifying than getting lower ratings than your mother?
—
Jessica Winter,
New Yorker,
7 May 2026
One particularly mortifying episode from the past haunts Hally.
—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2026
Even more fortunately, TJ also has a real, if mortifying, alibi.
—
Sophie Brookover,
Vulture,
12 Dec. 2025
The answer might be a mortifying surprise.
—
The Washington Post,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
28 Oct. 2025
The mortifying moment comes at a time when international tourism continues to rebound strongly despite global uncertainty.
—
Soo Kim,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
Just last year, the Trust for Public Land scored the city way down at 90th out of 100 cities, the kind of mortifying ranking usually occupied in other categories by Mississippi (sorry, Mississippi).
—
Patt Morrison,
Los Angeles Times,
6 May 2026
Baby Reindeer was hardly a laugh riot, but mortifying humor is still humor and, with episodic running times in the 30-minute range, the show had a charging, unpredictable momentum.
—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Apr. 2026
The graduation ceremony and the reception afterward are cute and heartwarming for the grown-ups, bittersweet and mortifying for the kids, who skive off to smoke some of Ed’s high-test weed and have a little Texas Forever moment, toasting their enduring friendships.
—
Sophie Brookover,
Vulture,
27 Mar. 2026
Classmates saw the sign while riding by Goepper’s home on the school bus, mortifying the teenage Goepper.
—
Sean Gregory,
Time,
18 Feb. 2026
Ursula Lindsey The Norwegian writer Vigdis Hjorth has a gift for depicting painful, confusing, and mortifying relationships.
—
Joanna Walsh,
The New York Review of Books,
15 Nov. 2025
And that display from our fans was mortifying.
—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
30 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mortifying
Adjective
-
Both attended Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, when Kelce’s Kansas City Chiefs suffered a humiliating defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles, 22-40.
-
Like other female inmates in Tennessee and beyond, Sellars experienced strip searches that are more humiliating than what men experience because of their menstrual cycles.
Verb
-
The moms aren’t embarrassing their kids.
-
Several other policy changes led to blowback from the public and Starmer was forced to make a series of embarrassing U-turns that provided political capital for opponents and fed beliefs that the prime minister didn’t stand for much.
Adjective
-
Being on an island starving is very humbling.
-
Those listeners are the ones who are our backbone, which is very humbling.
Verb
-
Why People Misunderstand This Intelligence The first mistake people make is confusing integrative intelligence with being broadly knowledgeable.
-
Having said that, conversations might be confusing today.
Adjective
-
No one should be subject to listening to the most degrading and profane words that now seem popular with some people.
-
According to the company, the electronic attack variant is intended to provide non-kinetic effects on the battlefield by disrupting and degrading enemy sensors and reconnaissance networks.
Adjective
-
Some women who filed lawsuits against Ortega reported they had been confused about whether demeaning or uncomfortable actions the doctor engaged in during exams was within the bounds of necessary medical behavior.
-
Some of the women interviewed for the article claimed that Platner could be demeaning to women and, in at least one case, even physically threatening.
Cite this Entry
“Mortifying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mortifying. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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