Abashes

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To induce feelings of shame or embarrassment in another person
2. Makes someone feel self-conscious or uneasy by surprising or confusing them in a socially awkward way
3. Provokes a sense of awkwardness or shame that disrupts a person's confidence or composure

Etymology: "Abashes" is the third-person singular present of "abash," which in Middle English meant to lose one's composure and by the later 14th century could mean to make someone ashamed. It comes from Old French "esbaïr," literally "utterly astonish," whose Medieval Latin ancestor "exbadō" combined "ex-" with "bado," "to gape, yawn," an imitation of the sound of a yawn, so the original picture is of someone left gaping in amazement.

Synonyms: embarrasses, humiliates, disconcerts, mortifies, shames

Antonyms: emboldens, encourages, boosts, comforts, reassures