Wordwyrt

shamefaced

Meaningshame-bound

Common meaning: embarrassed or visibly ashamed

Journey through time

  1. Old Englishscamfæst‘shame-bound’source
  2. Middle Englishmeaning shiftsshame-bound → modestshamefast‘modest’source
  3. Englishmeaning shiftsmodest → embarrassed or visibly ashamedshamefaced‘embarrassed or visibly ashamed’ · today

Sources & notes

Meaning: “Meaning” is the sense that emerges from the word’s roots; “Common meaning” is today’s everyday sense. Both written by us.

Pronunciation

  • UK IPA: not available. Respelling: generated.
  • US IPA: not available. Respelling: generated.

Origin: Built on Old English scamfæst ‘shame-bound’.

Did you know: our wording, based on Skeat, Etymological Dictionary (1898), entry SHAMEFACED, p. 545 · dictionary scan

Roots

Building blocks are an automatic split · open in app