embarrass

[…]

/[…]/ verb

The verdict

“embarrass” is uncommon German (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency German
9
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - (oneself) sich (selbst) in Verlegenheit / eine peinliche Lage bringen; beschämen, blamieren, lächerlich machen

Corpus desk

Index DE-embarrass · embarrass · German

embarrass · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 9 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "E" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for embarrass
PropertyValue
Headwordembarrass
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[…]
Letters9
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Langschwanz-Rang von „embarrass“ im Deutschen

embarrassschafft es nicht in die Top 100.000 des Deutschen: Zone für Fach-, Alt- oder Seltenwortschatz.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

embarrass is uncommon German outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed […]. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 5 senses are on record.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for embarrass, suggesting the orthography follows predictable German patterns. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which usually means its spelling is distinct enough that readers don't reach for a similar-looking word instead.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest to reason about phoneme by phoneme, absent a documented history. The correct German form is embarrass, spelled E-M-B-A-R-R-A-S-S.

Definition

  1. 1
    (oneself) sich (selbst) in Verlegenheit / eine peinliche Lage bringen; beschämen, blamieren, lächerlich machen
  2. 2
    (somebody) jemanden in Verlegenheit / eine peinliche Lage bringen; beschämen, blamieren; und jemandem (dadurch) Probleme bereiten
  3. 3
    (somebody) jemanden in Verlegenheit / eine peinliche Lage bringen; beschämen, blamieren; und jemandem (dadurch) Probleme bereiten
  4. 4
    (somebody) jemanden in Verlegenheit / eine peinliche Lage bringen; beschämen, blamieren; und jemandem (dadurch) Probleme bereiten
  5. 5
    (something) etwas hindern, hemmen

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how embarrass appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. It embarrassed me to have to give my opinion in public.
  2. The protest may have been timed to embarrass the President.

Synonyms

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "embarrass"?
"embarrass" is spelled E-M-B-A-R-R-A-S-S. The IPA pronunciation is […].
What does "embarrass" mean?
As a verb, "embarrass" means: (oneself) sich (selbst) in Verlegenheit / eine peinliche Lage bringen; beschämen, blamieren, lächerlich machen
How do you pronounce "embarrass"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "embarrass" is […]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "embarrass" come from?
"embarrass" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list