shame

shame1 [ ʃeım ] noun **

1. ) uncount a guilty and embarrassed feeling you have when you or someone else has behaved badly:

He speaks about it openly and without shame.

bow/hang your head in shame (=hold your head down and look away from people because you feel ashamed): The people who let this happen should hang their heads in shame.

a ) the ability to feel guilty or embarrassed when you or someone else behaves badly:

Has he no shame?

2. ) uncount loss of respect or a good reputation because of your own or someone else's bad behavior or bad performance:

They accused her of bringing shame and disgrace on the family name.

There is no shame in failing.

to someone's shame: To their shame, they were proven wrong.

3. ) singular a reason for feeling sad or disappointed:

It seems a shame to waste all this food.

It was a shame that you couldn't come with us.

a great/crying/terrible shame: It would have been a crying shame if we'd have lost the game.

(oh,) what a shame SPOKEN

used for expressing sympathy or disappointment:

She's resigned? Oh, what a shame.

put someone/something to shame

to make someone or something seem bad or less impressive by comparison:

They're so efficient they put us to shame.

shame on you SPOKEN

used for telling someone that they should feel guilty or embarrassed

shame

shame 2 [ ʃeım ] verb transitive

1. ) to make someone feel guilty or embarrassed:

The behavior of the fans has shamed the team.

2. ) to cause yourself or someone else to lose respect or a good reputation:

Mom thought my divorce shamed the family.

3. ) to make someone or something seem bad or less impressive by comparison:

The clarity of the new TV shames even some movie screens.

`shame ,into phrasal verb transitive

shame someone into doing something to make someone feel so guilty or embarrassed that they do what you want:

Congress has been shamed into providing more money for the project.