| 释义 |
▪ I. shame, n.|ʃeɪm|
Forms: α. 1 scamu, sceamu, 1–4 scame, 2–3 same, 3 seame, 3–4 scam, ssame, 3–5, 6 Sc. scham, 3–5, 6–7 Sc. schame, (4 chame), Sc. schaym(e, 4, 6 sham, 6 Sc. schamme, scheyme, (schaheme), 3– shame. β. 1 scomu, scomo, sceomu, 2–3 scome, 3 sceome, some, 3–4 scheome, schom, 3–5 schome, shome.
[Com. Teut.: OE. sc(e)amu, sc(e)ǫmu, corresponds to OFris. scome, OS. skama, MDu. schame (mod.Du. schaam- in compounds), OHG. scama (MHG., mod.G. scham), ON. skǫmm with unexplained gemination (Sw., Da. skam), Goth. *skama (inferred from the derivative skaman refl. to be ashamed):—OTeut. *skamō.
From the Teut. root *skam- are also OHG. scant ashamed (:—*skamdo-), Goth. skanda, OHG. scanda (G. schande) fem., disgrace, OE. scand masc., infamous man, scand fem., infamous woman, disgrace, scęndan (:—*skamdjan) shend v.
Outside Teut. no root of corresponding form and sense has been found, but many scholars assume a pre-Teut. *skem-, variant of *kem- to cover (Teut. *hem-: ham- as in hame1), ‘covering oneself’ being the natural expression of shame.]
I.
1. a. The painful emotion arising from the consciousness of something dishonouring, ridiculous, or indecorous in one's own conduct or circumstances (or in those of others whose honour or disgrace one regards as one's own), or of being in a situation which offends one's sense of modesty or decency.
c725Corpus Gloss. (Hessels) P. 844 Pudor, scomo. c950Lindisf. Gosp. Luke xiv. 9 Ðu inginnas mið sceoma [cum rubore] þæt hlætmesto stoue ᵹehalda. a1225St. Marher. 7 Ah þe schulde scheomien..ȝef þu scheome cuðest þat þulli mot haldest wið a ȝung meiden. c1250Gen. & Ex. 349 Flesses fremeðe and safte same boðen he felten on here lichame. 1471Caxton Recuyell (Sommer) I. 240 Alle shame and vergoyne redowblith in me. 1595Shakes. John iv. i. 114 You will but make it blush, And glow with shame of your proceedings, Hubert. 1623Fletcher & Rowley Maid in Mill i. iii, But for my part (in all humility And with no little shame) I ask your pardons. 1711Steele Spect. No. 114 ⁋4 Shame of Poverty makes Laertes lanch into unnecessary Equipage. 1842Tennyson Ld. of Burleigh 63 As it were with shame she blushes. 1860Pusey Min. Proph. 240 Shame at the evil which sin is, works repentance.
Personified.1590Spenser F.Q. ii. vii. 22 Lamenting Sorrow did in darknesse lye, And Shame his vgly face did hide from liuing eye. 1742Gray Eton 64 Pallid Fear, And Shame, that sculks behind.
b. pl.
1851Helps Comp. Solit. viii. 152 Being free from many of the usual small shames, petty ends, trivial vanities.
c. sense of shame: the consciousness of this emotion, guilty feeling; also, the right perception of what is improper or disgraceful (cf. 2).
1647C. Harvey Schola Cordis xv. 29 Untill the sense of shame Makes me contemne my self-dishonour'd name. 1700Dryden Cinyras & Myrrha 307 Another, and another Night she came; For frequent Sin had left no Sense of Shame. 1766Fordyce Serm. Yng. Women (1767) I. i. 11 All but those who..have..lost their sense of shame. 1847Tennyson Princess iv. 330 And full of cowardice and guilty shame, I grant in her some sense of shame, she flies. 1872Darwin Emotions xiii. 321 Under a keen sense of shame, there is a strong desire for concealment.
d. past shame, dead to shame, no longer capable of feeling shame, grown callous to shame.
1509[see past prep. 3]. 1647Hexham i. s.v., He is past shame. 1780Warner in Jesse Selwyn & Contemp. (1844) IV. 325 His wife and her sister are not great enough or little enough to be dead to shame.
2. Fear of offence against propriety or decency, operating as a restraint on behaviour; modesty, shamefastness. without shame, shameless(ly.
c1386Chaucer Wife's Prol. 342 In habit maad with chastitee and shame Ye wommen shul apparaille yow. 1576Gascoigne Grief of Joye iv. xxxv. Wks. 1910 II. 555 The dark⁓some nyght, sharpe enemye to shame, By candles light, betrayethe many a dame. 1590Shakes. Mids. N. iii. ii. 285 Haue you no modesty, no maiden shame, No touch of bashfulnesse? 1622Mabbe tr. Aleman's Guzman d'Alf. ii. 131 Discouering those parts which shame bids vs hide. 1692R. L'Estrange Josephus, Antiq. iv. viii. (1733) 97 A Debtor that hath neither the Shame nor the Conscience to restore what he borrowed. 1780Bentham Princ. Legisl. xii. §10 Where robberies are frequent and unpunished robberies are committed without shame. 1875Jowett Plato (ed. 2) V. 45 To infuse into them that divine fear, which we call shame. Mod. I am not surprised at his request; he is quite without shame.
Personified.c1400Rom. Rose 3058 And grauntid hir..That Shame, bicause she is honest, Shal keper of the roser be. 1754Gray Poesy 64 Her track, where'er the Goddess roves, Glory pursue, and generous Shame.
3. a. Disgrace, ignominy, loss of esteem or reputation.
a990Cynewulf Crist 1274 Hi þær scoma mæste dreoᵹað. c1175Lamb. Hom. 59 To..kepen us from hearm and scome. a1300K. Horn 327 Schame mote þu fonge & on hiȝe rode anhonge. 1362Langl. P. Pl. A. iv. 28 For to sauen hem⁓self from schome and from harme. c1385Chaucer L.G.W. 1028 Thour out the worl oure shame is kid so wyde. 1535Coverdale Ezek. xvi. 52 Therfore beare thine owne shame. 1590Shakes. Com. Err. iv. iv. 70 Free from these slanders, and this open shame. 1729Butler Serm. Wks. 1874 II. 14 Men, to avoid the shame of one villainy, are sometimes guilty of a greater. 1764Burn Poor Laws 199 By once inflicting shame on a criminal, we for ever remove that fear of it, which is one very strong preservative against doing evil. 1845S. Austin Ranke's Hist. Ref. I. 194 After such high-raised expectations, the result was shame and ignominy. 1859Tennyson Enid 101 Far better were I laid in the dark earth..Than that my lord thro' me should suffer shame.
b. An instance or piece of disgrace.
c1230Hali Meid. 8 (Bodley MS.) Teonen þolien, & gromen & scheomen. c1385Chaucer L.G.W. 589 So fil it as fortune hym aughte a schame. a1470Hardyng Chron. cxiv. xviii, Thus synnes olde make shames come full newe. a1586Sidney Arcadia ii. (Sommer) 99 Though..euery death were followed with a thousand shames. 1606Shakes. Ant. & Cl. i. iv. 72 Let his shames quickely Driue him to Rome. 1633F. Greville Poems, Treat. Warres vii. 71 So be the Shames of Peace, the Pride of Warre. 1880McCarthy Own Times IV. 32 The calamities and shames of 1865 might have been avoided. 1891Farrar Darkn. & Dawn i, The name of her sister Drusilla had been already stained with a thousand shames.
c. spec. Violation of a woman's honour, loss of chastity. † to do (a) shame, to offer violence (to). child, son of shame, a child born out of wedlock.
c1205Lay. 12101 Melga nom Oriene..& scome hire bihedde & ladde heo to his bedde. c1385Chaucer L.G.W. 488 That al here lyf ne don nat but asayen How manye wemen they may don a schame. 1590Spenser F.Q. iii. v. 13 After that foster fowle he fiercely rid, To bene auenged of the shame, he did To that faire Damzell. 1603Shakes. Meas. for M. iii. i. 140 Is't not a kind of Incest, to take life From thine owne sisters shame? 1722De Foe Col. Jack (1840) 2 My nurse..bred me up very carefully with her own son, and with another son of shame like me. 1813Byron Giaour 421 And every woe a tear can claim, Except an erring sister's shame. 1827Scott Surg. Dau. ii, A child of shame, deserted by its father and mother. 1833Tennyson Sisters 8 She mix'd her ancient blood with shame. 1864― Aylmer's F. 687 The poor child of shame.
†d. shames death (shames deid, shames dede, etc.), a shameful death. Obs.
a1300Cursor M. 1619 He suar his ath Þat þai suld all thole schammes deid. c1386Chaucer Merch. T. 1133 God yeve yow bothe on shames deeth to dyen! c1440Bone Flor. 1823 God gyf the schames dedd. c1450St. Cuthbert (Surtees) 7829 Þai had aftir an yuel spede, Shames deed or outelawde. 16..Sir John Butler iv. in Child Ballads III. 330/1 A shames death may hee dye!
†e. Infliction of disgrace, injurious language or conduct. (Cf. the phrases in 11.) Obs.
c975Rushw. Gosp. Mark xii. 4 Mið scomum miclum toᵹiworhtun [contumeliis affecerunt]. a1225Ancr. R. 108 In his earen he hefde,..al þe schorn, & alle þe scheomen þet earen muhte iheren. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 300 b, Than began all the multytude with moost shame and abhomynacyon..to spyt in thy blessed face.
†4. What is morally disgraceful or dishonourable; baseness in conduct or behaviour. to do shame, to do something disgraceful or wicked.
a1300Cursor M. 25497 Ken us lauerd, for þi nam, Forsak bat sin and scam. c1386Chaucer Wife's T. 295 Men may wel often fynde A lordes sone do shame and vileynye. c1400Destr. Troy 13704 He cast hym by course..To venge of his vilany & his vile schame. a1520Dunbar ‘Be ȝe ane luvar’ 6 Be layth alway to do amiss or schame. 1682Sir T. Browne Chr. Mor. iii. §17 If that degenerous vice possess thee, hide thyself in the shadow of thy shame, and pollute not noble society.
5. a. Used predicatively (without article) for: A fact or circumstance which brings disgrace or discredit (to a person, etc.); matter for severe reproach or reprobation. Now poet.
a1000Colloq. ælfric in Wr.-Wülcker 100 Micel hynd and sceamu [uerecundia] hyt is menn nelle wesan þæt þæt he ys. c1200Ormin 11956 Forr þatt wass, alls he wisste itt wel, Hiss aȝhenn shame & shande. c1380Wyclif Wks. (1880) 72 It is schame to written it but more to done it in dede. c1386Chaucer Prol. 505 And shame it is, if a preest take keep, A shiten shepherde and a clene sheep. c1475Rauf Coilȝear 87 For first to lofe and syne to lak, Peter! it is schame. 1538Starkey England i. iv. 125 Thys ys not only grete hurte to the commyn wele, but also grete schame and dyshonowre to our cuntrey. 1593Shakes. Rich. II, ii. i. 238 Now afore heauen, 'tis shame such wrongs are borne In him a royall Prince. 1784Cowper Tiroc. 78 Truths..That 'tis our shame and mis'ry not to learn. 1819Scott Ivanhoe xl, It were shame to our profession were we to suffer it. 1850Tennyson In Mem. xlviii. 11 She..holds it sin and shame to draw The deepest measure from the chords. 1896A. E. Housman Shropshire Lad v, Some lads there are, 'tis shame to say, That only court to thieve.
b. Similarly a shame, a great shame. Now common in colloq. use.
1390Gower Conf. II. 28 Which were a schame unto his trowthe. c1450Mirk's Festial 27 Hit was a gret schame to all hom þat werne gret clerkes. 1577B. Googe Heresbach's Husb. i. (1586) 16 b, If it be a shame for..a pleadar of causes to be ignorant of the lawe wherein he dealeth, a greater shame is it for a professor of husbandry, to be vnskilful in the ground whereon his whole trade lyeth. 1648Hunting of Fox 36 'Tis a foul shame that you should be last in returning to a sence of your duty. 1662–3Pepys Diary 19 Jan., They..pay fifteen or twenty sometimes per cent. for their money which is a most horrid shame. 1799Ht. Lee Canterb. T., Frenchman's T. (ed. 2) I. 199 What a shame yon pretty cot should be suffered to go to ruin! 1809Malkin Gil Blas vii. v, It was a burning shame to see such a waste of provisions. 1815Scott Guy M. xxxix, I envy you the concatenation, Colonel—it is a shame to me not to have drawn the same conclusion. 1858S. Brooks Gord. Knot xvi. 119 ‘It's a ― shame’, jerked out Mr. Spenser. 1866Geo. Eliot F. Holt xxii, It's a sin and a shame. 1889J. K. Jerome Three Men in Boat 166 George said it was a wicked shame of Mrs. G.
c. Occas. in non-predicative use: A disgraceful thing, something to be ashamed of. poet.
c1600Shakes. Sonn. lxi. 7 Into my deeds to prye, To find out shames and idle houres in me. 1850Tennyson In Mem. li. 7 Shall he for whose applause I strove..See with clear eye some hidden shame And I be lessen'd in his love? 1855― Maud iii. iv, A peace that was full of wrongs and shames.
6. a. A person or thing that is a cause or source of disgrace. Const. to, of, † on.
a1586Sidney Arcadia ii. (Sommer) 99 That only I..should become a plague to my selfe and a shame to womankind. 1607Shakes. Cor. i. iv. 31 You Shames of Rome. 1675J. Owen Indwelling Sin xiii. (1732) 165 It may be this Day you had been a Terror to your selves, a Shame to your Relations. 1681Cotton Wond. Peak 76 Environ'd round with Natures shames and Ills, Black Heaths, wild Rocks, bleak Craggs, and naked Hills. 1709–11Pope Ess. Crit. 694 Erasmus, that great injur'd name, (The glory of the Priesthood, and the shame!). 1757Gray Bard 87 Ye towers of Julius, London's lasting shame. 1778[W. H. Marshall] Minutes Agric., Digest 113 Colleges of Agriculture, reared in those Wastes which are now a shame on their Country. 1819Shelley Cenci iii. i. 287 Nature casts him off, who is her shame.
b. colloq. A thing which is shockingly ugly or indecent, or of disgracefully bad quality.
1764Gray Jemmy Twitcher 8 His nose is a shame,—and his eyes are so lewd! 1815Scott Guy M. v, Luckie Finniston sent up three [hens] that were a shame to be seen. 1880Tennyson Village Wife vii, An' 'e bowt little statutes all-naäkt an' which was a shaame to be seen.
7. concr. The privy members or ‘parts of shame’. Now rare or Obs.
a1000Cædmon's Gen. 942 (Gr.), Het heora sceome þeccan frea frumhræᵹle. c1050Voc. in Wr.-Wülcker 470/23 Preputia, scama, þa wæpenlican limo. c1250Gen. & Ex. 351 Ðo gunen he same sriden, And limes in leues hiden. a1300Cursor M. 2026 His midelst þat hight cam, Bihild, and sagh his fader schame. 1584B. R. tr. Herodotus ii. 86 Other [women] cast vp their clothes, & openly discouer and bewray their shame. 1599T. M[oufet] Silkwormes 3 Then fig-tree fannes uppon their shame they wore. 1611Bible Rev. xvi. 15 Least hee walke naked, and they see his shame. [1795tr. Thunberg's Trav. (ed. 2) II. 78 The Hottentots universally wore a bag just before the parts of shame.] 1922Joyce Ulysses 533 And with loving pencil you shaded my eyes, my bosom and my shame.
II. Phrases.
8. to have shame: to be ashamed, feel ashamed. Const. of, inf., that. Now poet.
c888ælfred Boeth. xi. §1 Hi habbað sceame þæs welan ᵹif hi ne beoð swa æþele on ᵹebyrdum swa hi woldon. c1175Lamb. Hom. 137 And þere mide hine aleseð of scome þe he habben sculde ȝif he heo ne ȝef. c1375Sc. Leg. Saints i. (Petrus) 535 Sic schent and schame at hart had he. Ibid. xxvii. (Machor) 1014 Alswa had he schame to tell quhy [etc.]. c1400Mandeville (1839) xii. 133 Sche had gret schame, that sche hadde a Child. c1400Rule St. Benet (Prose) 30 Þat tay haue shame of þair faute. 1842Tennyson Vision of Sin iv. vi, Sit thee down, and have no shame, Cheek by jowl, and knee by knee.
9. to think shame, to be ashamed. (Occas. to think it shame.) Const. of, for, inf., or that...
†a. The early examples belong to the impersonal think v., const. dat. (him etc. thinketh shame). Obs.
b. In the 15th c. this construction gave place to that in which the verb is the personal think v.2 Now somewhat arch.
a.c1205Lay. 28850 For mucchel scome heom þuhte þat wepmen heom ne rohte. a1300[see think v.1 B. 2 a]. a1400St. Alexius 5 (Vernon MS.), To seruen god þhuȝte him no schome.
b.c1470Henry Wallace x. 517 And for hys wrang reyff othir he sall think schame Or de tharfor. 1648J. Beaumont Psyche i. cxi, And then eleven great Stars thought it no shame To couch before me who admired them. 1724–7Ramsay Wyfe of Auchtermuchty xv, I trow the man thocht mekle schame. 1791[see think v.2 B. 1 c]. 1816Scott Bl. Dwarf ix, Thinkna ye shame o' yoursells, to come here..to frighten a lone widow woman? 1871Freeman Norm. Conq. (1876) IV. xviii. 187 Men thought it shame to dwell at such a time under the shadow of a house.
10. to take shame.
†a. To be disgraced, incur disgrace (obs.).
b. To conceive shame, feel ashamed; to accept blame or disgrace as merited; to acknowledge that one is in fault. More fully to take shame to (unto, upon) oneself.
1338R. Brunne Chron. (1810) 323 Grete pite it was, þat þe hede of Cristendam Suld for any trespas take so foule a scham. 1509Hawes Past. Pleas. xxxii. (Percy Soc.) 156, I was not proude, I toke of him no shame. 1603Shakes. Meas. for M. ii. iii. 36, I doe repent me, as it is an euill, And take the shame with ioy. 1607B. Barnes Divils Charter i. iii. B 2, Take to thee Gismond both the skorne and shame. 1712Steele Spect. No. 448 ⁋3, I take shame upon myself for this Crime. 1727Boyer Dict. Royal II. s.v., I take shame to my self, that, J'avouë à ma honte, que. 1821Scott Kenilw. xv, I take shame to say, that [etc.]. 1869Goulburn Purs. Holiness x. 91 So long as they take shame to themselves for the evil which is in them.
†11. to do (a person) shame: to inflict injury or dishonour, offer reproach or obloquy (see also 3 c). Also to say or speak (one) shame; to say or speak shame of, on, by. Also with a and pl. Obs.
c950Lindisf. Gosp. Luke xi. 45 Nobis contumeliam facis us sceoma ðu does. a1200Vices & Virtues 51 Alle ðe scames and ðe bismeres ðe hie arrer him hadde idon. a1225Leg. Kath. 349 Ah gað ȝet & seggeð scheome bi ure undeadliche godes. a1250Owl & Night. 363 Yet þu me seyst an oþer schome Þat ich an on Myn eye lome. 1297R. Glouc. (Rolls) 3239 Hii þoȝte to do þis lond ssame. c1385Chaucer L.G.W. 467 Ne a trewe louere may me nat blame Thaw that I speke a fals louere sum schame. 1470–85Malory Arthur x. xxvii. 457 The letter spak shame by her and by sir launcelot. 1535Coverdale Dan. xi. 18 A prynce shal stoppe him, to do him a shame. 1595Shakes. John iv. iii. 97 If thou..teach thy hastie spleene to do me shame. 1603― Meas. for M. iii. i. 81 Why giue you me this shame? 1611Bible 1 Sam. xx. 34 Hee was grieued for Dauid, because his father had done him shame.
12. to put to shame: to bring into disgrace, bring disgrace upon; also fig. to outshine, eclipse. Similarly, to bring, † shape, † turn to shame. Also † to go to shame, to be ruined or spoilt.
a1250Owl & Night. 522 Hwenne þu hauest ido þi gome Þi stefne goþ anon to schome [Cotton MS. shome]. c1290Sancta Crux 398 in S. Eng. Leg. 12 Cristine men þat he miȝte i-finde Alle he brouȝte to schame. c1375Sc. Leg. Saints ii. (Paulus) 521 He schupe þam all to schame, Þat euir trowit in cristis name. a1440Sir Degrev. 127 He sey, ‘Alle ȝoode to schome!’ And went one hys wey. 1445tr. Claudian in Anglia XXVIII. 269 With her also thou puttist to shame her loothsom norice ambicion. c1470Henry Wallace x. 1004 The Roman [buikis] at than was in Scotland, He gart be brocht to scham, quhar thai thaim fand. 1591Shakes. Two Gent. iv. iv. 67 A Slaue, that still an end turnes me to shame. 1611Bible Heb. vi. 6 They crucifie to themselues the Sonne of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. 1752‘Sir H. Beaumont’ tr. Attiret's Acc. Emp. China's Gard. 29 If any one of them is caught in the Fact [i.e. Thieving] he is brought to Shame. 1780Cowper Progr. Error 245 Has time worn out, or fashion put to shame, Good sense, good health, good conscience, and good fame? 1855Thackeray Newcomes xli, No young woman of this year has come near her: those of the past seasons she has distanced, and utterly put to shame. 1865F. Parkman Huguenots i. (1875) 5 Every ship from the New World came freighted with marvels which put the fictions of chivalry to shame.
13. a. for shame: from a sense of shame, because one feels shame; also, for fear of shame, in order to avoid shame; so † for shame of, in order not to bring shame upon. Also for shame's sake.
c900tr. Bæda's Hist. iv. xxiv. (1899) 482 Þonne aras he for scome from þæm symble. c1200Ormin 16971 Forrþi þatt he ne mihhte nohht O daȝȝ forr shame lernenn. c1386Chaucer Frankl. T. 24 Save that the name of soveraynetee, That wolde he have for shame of his degree. 1592Shakes. Ven. & Ad. 36 He red for shame, but frosty in desire. 1592Moryson Let. 21 Oct. in Itin. (1617) i. 38 When I looked my face in a glasse, I could not for shame take this course. 1823Scott Quentin D. xxxiii, I will grant you as fair terms as for very shame's sake you ought to ask in my present condition. 1859Tennyson Vivien 548 The shame that cannot be explain'd for shame.
b. esp. in adjuration or remonstrance. Hence often as an int. = ‘shame on you!’ ‘you should be ashamed’; also fie for shame! (see fie int. 1).
a1300Cursor M. 2794 For scam ne dos þam na males. c1374Chaucer Anel. & Arc. 272 Mi swete fo, whi do ye so, for shame. c1412Hoccleve De Reg. Princ. 1057 Ffor shame! why makest þou al this wo? 1575Gammer Gurton's Needle iv. ii. 42 Canst thou for shame deny it? 1592Shakes. Ven. & Ad. 379 ‘For shame’, he cries, ‘let go, and let me go’. a1642Suckling Fragm. Aurea, ‘Why so pale and wan’, Quit, quit for shame. 1775Sheridan Rivals ii. ii, Lucy. For shame now! here is some one coming. 1840Thackeray Shabby-genteel Story v, At which remark..Miss Caroline very properly said ‘For shame, Becky!’ 1850Miss Warner Wide World xxx, ‘Oh, William!—William!—for shame! for shame!’ said Ellen again.
†14. in shame of: in order to put to shame. Obs.
1596Dalrymple tr. Leslie's Hist. Scot. I. 101 To put a gluue vpon the poynte of ane speir in exprobratione and schame of him quha crakit his creddence. 1601Shakes. Jul. C. ii. ii. 41 The Gods do this in shame of Cowardice.
15. to one's shame, so as to cause one shame, in a way that brings one discredit. Also parenthetically, with ellipsis of ‘be it spoken’. In early use also † to or † for (one) to shame.
c1205Lay. 21008 Heore ȝelp & heore gome ilomp heom seoluen to scame. 1382Wyclif 1 Cor. vi. 5, I seie to ȝoure schame. 1390Gower Conf. II. 30 And yit for Demephon to schame Into this dai it berth the name. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 42 His credytours claymeth dette of hym to his payne & great shame. 1596Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, v. i. 93 For my part, I may speake it to my shame, I haue a Truant beene to Chiualry. 1815Scott Guy M. xlvii, It is greatly to the shame of our young lover's apprehension, that [etc.]. 1835Macaulay in Trevelyan Life (1876) I. 444, I read some of his Dialogues of the Dead when I was thirteen; and to my shame, I never..read a line of him since.
16. a. In ejaculatory formulae of imprecation or indignant disapproval, as (a) shame (or † a shame) betide (take, etc.)..!; (b) shame to or shame on..!; (c) (the) more shame for..; (d) shame! simply. Also for shame! (see 13 b); (e) used simply in S. Afr., as an expression of sympathy or pleasure.
(a)a1352Minot Poems (ed. Hall) ii. 12 Schame bityde þe Skottes for þai er full of gile. c1400Rom. Rose 4267 God yeve him shame! 1568Grafton Chron. II. 968 Shame come to him that is the cause thereof. 1593Shakes. 2 Hen. VI, iii. i. 307 Nay, then a shame take all.
(b)1595Shakes. John ii. i. 167 Now shame vpon you where she does or no. 1728Pope Dunciad i. 113 Now (shame to Fortune!) an ill Run at Play Blank'd his bold visage. 1819Shelley Cenci v. ii. 60 Shame on these tears! 1855Kingsley Westw. Ho! xv, It can't be expected, and no shame to them!
(c)1591Shakes. Two Gent. iv. iv. 138 The more shame for him, that he sends it me. 1662Stillingfl. Orig. Sacræ ii. vi. §16 Did they not? the more shame for them: and if they did, the more shame for this great Rabbi thus to belie them. 1848Dickens Dombey vi, ‘Ah! true! more shame for him,’ thought Walter.
(d)1605Shakes. Macb. iii. iv. 66 Shame it selfe, Why do you make such faces? 1709Steele Tatler No. 21 ⁋13 The whole Town cries out, Shame! That one of his Coat should be such an Atheist? 1834–51M. Howitt Sk. Nat. Hist., Wolf ii. 82 Oh, shame, that ever it hath been said, That bloody war is a glorious trade! 1848Times 14 Nov. 5/2 A great many voices cried out ‘Shame! shame!’ 1887Pall Mall Gaz. 29 Jan. 5/1 Sir Michael Hicks-Beach's proposal..elicited cries of ‘Shame!’ from the Irish benches.
(e)1932Grocott's Mail (Grahamstown, S. Afr.) 9 Jan. 3 During the address of our local dairy representatives..I heard several murmurs of Oh! and Shame! and grant the statements were given in a manner that commanded much sympathy. 1952N. Gordimer Soft Voice of Serpent (1953) i. 6 ‘Shame, isn't he a funny old man,’ she said. 1976Sunday Times (Johannesburg) 14 Nov., Oh, look, look!..those foals. Oh, shame, aren't they sweet.
b. to cry shame on, upon, † of: to express vigorous reprobation of.
1599Shakes. Much Ado iv. i. 123 Why doth not euery earthly thing Cry shame vpon her? 1617Moryson Itin. ii. 155 Don Jean..commended highly the valour of our men, and cried shame upon the cowardise of his owne. 1721De Foe Mem. Cavalier (1840) 255 The people cried shame of them. 1849Macaulay Hist. Eng. iii. I. 360 The pavement was detestable: all foreigners cried shame upon it.
III. 17. Comb., as (sense 7) shame-cloth, shame-rag; shame-burnt, shame-closing, shame-eaten, shame-making, shame-proof, shame-shrunk, shame-sick, shame-stricken, shame-swollen, shame-wounded adjs.; shame culture, a culture in which conformity of behaviour is maintained through the individual's fear of being shamed; † shamefish = pintle fish (see pintle 3); shameworthy a., of which one ought to be ashamed.
1849Helps Friends in C. ii. ii. (1854) 287 The shrinking, downcast, *shame-burnt woman.
1922Joyce Ulysses 55 She blinked up out of her avid *shameclosing eyes.
1963M. Laurence Tomorrow-Tamer 226 Not yet five years old, she wore only a *shamecloth, a mere flutter of red and beaded rag around her middle and between her legs.
1947R. Benedict Chrysanthemum & Sword x. 223 True *shame cultures rely on external sanctions for good behaviour. 1953M. B. Singer in Piers & Singer Shame & Guilt ii. iii. 56, I shall consider whether the test data support the conclusion that American Indian cultures are predominantly shame cultures. 1977A. Giddens Stud. in Social & Polit. Theory 393 Some anthropologists have sought to contrast the ‘guilt cultures’ of Western Europe with ‘shame cultures’.
1859Meredith R. Feverel viii, His diversion only irritated and confused our *shame-eaten youth.
1655Moufet & Bennet Health's Improv. xviii. 174 Yards or *shamefishes (Colybdænæ). 1672J. Josselyn New-Eng. Rarities 32 Yardfish, Asses Prick or Shame⁓fish.
1934R. Macaulay Going Abroad xxxv. 297 He adoring some one else, that was *shame-making and humbling too. 1977D. Ramsay You can't call it Murder i. 26 Nothing to do with her, thank God. Offering such thanks was shame-making.
1588Shakes. L.L.L. v. ii. 513 We are *shame-proofe my Lord.
1938R. Graves Coll. Poems 166 Those froward hermits..Wore but a *shame-rag, dusk or dawn, And rolled in thorny places.
1631Quarles Samson Med. xvi. 97 Wee can trample Vpon our *shame shrunke cloakes, by your example.
15..G. Ellis Lament. Lost Sheepe in Farr S. P. Eliz. (1845) 410 With *shame-sick Adam haue I hid my head.
1848Thackeray Van. Fair xxix, Heart-stained, and *shame-stricken, he stood at the bed's foot.
1592Nashe P. Penilesse Wks. 1904 I. 197 Would you..gesse it were possible for any *shame-swolne toad to haue the spet-proofe face to out liue this disgrace?
1382Wyclif Lev. xvi. 4 And with lynnen breches he shal hile the *shame worthi [1388 schamefast] membres. 1600Holland Livy xxxiv. 855 If they begin once to shame at that which is not shame⁓worthy. 1802Lamb Let. to Manning 24 Sept., If I should have formed a diabolical resolution..of not admitting any spirituous liquors into my house, will you be my guest on such shameworthy terms?
1922Joyce Ulysses 49 Our souls, *shamewounded by our sins, cling to us yet more.
▪ II. shame, v.|ʃeɪm|
Pa. tense and pple. shamed |ʃeɪmd|. Forms: α. 1–2 sceamian, scami(ᵹ)an, 2–3 scamien, 3 shamien, samie, schamie, ssame, scam, 3–6 schame, 4 ssamie, scham, 5 schamyn, 6 Sc. schaam, scheyme, 8 dial. sheame, sham, 3– shame; β. 1 scomian, sceomian, 3 scomien, sceomien, scheomen, schomye, scomye, scumi, 3–4 schome.
[OE. sc(e)amian, sc(e)ǫmian, f. sc(e)amu, sc(e)ǫmu shame n.
The verb corresponds formally to OS. skamon, OHG. scamôn (MHG. schamen), mod.NFris. skaame, skômi; an older Teut. formation is represented by Goth. skaman, OHG. scamên; and a third type by MHG. schemen (mod.G. schämen), ON. skemma (Sw. skemma, Da. skjæmme to disgrace, injure); ON. had also skamma (Da. skamme refl. to be ashamed).]
1. intr. To feel or conceive shame; to become or be ashamed. Const. of, at, with, for. Obs. exc. dial. (see Eng. Dial. Dict.).
(In OE. with genit. of cause, also of refl. pron. = to be ashamed of oneself.)
Beowulf 1026 (Gr.) No he þære feohᵹyfte for sceotendum scamiᵹan ðorfte. c897ælfred Gregory's Past. C. lii. 409 Ðios sæ cwið ðæt ðu ðin scamiᵹe, Sidon. a1225Ancr. R. 312 Nolde þe kniht beon sori & scheomen ful sore? a1240Ureisun in O.E. Hom. I. 185 Þe sunne..leoseþ here liht and scomeþ aȝein þi brihte leor of hir þesturnesse. a1300Cursor M. 17429 Wit þis word scomed þan þe Iuus. 1340Hampole Pr. Consc. 7159 Þai salle swa schame ay of þair syn. c1440Alphabet of Tales 120 Som þat shamyd with þer syn, went & shrafe þaim clene þerof. 1534in Lett. Suppress. Monasteries (Camden) 49 He hath a brasyn forehed, which shameth at nothing. a1586Montgomerie Misc. Poems xxxii. (1887) 50, I thank my God I shame not of my shap. 1588Greene Pandosto (1607) E 3, And yet Dorastus, shame not at thy shepheards weede. 1606W. Crashaw Rom. Forgeries 52 The brazen face of the whore of Babylon, who shames with no sinne. 1651Jane Image Unbr. 95 They..shame not at such assertions of falshood as common States blush to be detected of.
b. With clause expressing the reason. arch.
c897ælfred Gregory's Past. C. x. 62 Ᵹif we ðonne scomiað þæt we to uncuðum monnum swelc sprecen. c1470Henry Wallace x. 491 Schamys thow nocht, that thow neuir ȝeit did gud? 1593Shakes. Lucr. 1143 Thou sing'st not in the day, As shaming any eye should thee behold. 1847Mrs. Norton Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap-bk. 28, I shame that a creature so light, should bid me thus quiver and bleed.
c. Const. to (or † for to) and inf. Now rare.
1375Barbour Bruce vii. 436 Ȝhe aucht to shame..For to schut at me on fer! c1400Mandeville (Roxb.) xx. 89 Men and wymmen..schamez noȝt for to schew þam as Godd made þam. a1513Fabyan Chron. vii. (1811) 328 Elyzabeth..shamyd not, for Crystis sake, to wesshe y⊇ sorys & bylis of lazars. a1541Wyatt Compl. upon Love in Tottel's Misc. (Arb.) 48 Now shames he not on me for to complain. 1598B. Jonson Ev. Man in Hum. ii. v. (1616) 28 Art thou a man? and sham'st thou not to beg? 1659Milton Hirelings Pref., Clergie who shame not..to maintain..their Popish and oft refuted positions. 1840Lady C. Bury Hist. of Flirt xv, A folly I shamed to confess. 1862Miss Mulock Dom. Stories 210, I shame to say that [etc.].
2. trans. impers., as in (it) shames me = I am ashamed. Const. to (or for to) and inf., a clause, or for; in OE. also genit. of cause. In later use only with it. Now rare.
c897ælfred Gregory's Past. C. xxi. 164 Oððe hwa bið ᵹescended, ðæt me forðæm ne scamiᵹe? c1000ælfric Gen. ii. 25 Hi wæron þa butu nacode..and him þæs ne sceamode. c1205Lay. 4851 Him swiðe scomede þat he swa i-scend wes. c1380Wyclif Serm. Sel. Wks. I. 22 Delve may Y not, and me shameþ for to begge. c1386Chaucer Man of Law's Prol. 3 To asken help thee shameth in thyn herte. 1470–85Malory Arthur viii. xxxix. 332 Me shamed att that tyme to haue more a doo with you.
1577St. Augustine's Man. 17 It shameth and irketh me to abide such thyngs as this world doth. 1652Needham tr. Selden's Mare Cl. 77 It shamed that noble Nation to pay Tribute, who were wont to command it. 1847Lytton Word to Public 10 Omitting it from the list of those [writings] it does not shame me to acknowledge.
3. trans. To feel shame in regard to (a person or thing); to hold in awe or reverence; to dread or shun through shame. Obs. or arch.
1382Wyclif Mark xii. 6 For by hap thei schulen schame my sone [gloss or drede with reuerence, Vulg. reverebuntur]. ― Heb. xi. 27 Not schamynge [gloss or dredynge, Vulg. non veritus], the hardnesse of the kyng. a1592Greene Jas. IV, v. vi, My maister sad—(for why he shames the Court) Is fled away. 1885–94R. Bridges Eros & Psyche May xxviii, And when at night her love flew to his place More than afore she shamed his fond embrace.
4. To make ashamed, fill with shame, cause to feel shame.
1530Palsgr. 701/1 I shame one,..I make one chaunge coloures. 1593Shakes. 3 Hen. VI, i. iv. 120 To tell thee whence thou cam'st, of whom deriu'd, Were shame enough to shame thee, Wert thou not shamelesse. 1639Mayne City Match iv. v. 43 Then, Sir, she is so modest... The least Obscene word shames her. 1735Pope Prol. Sat. i. 89 Who shames a Scribbler? break one cobweb thro', He spins the slight, self-pleasing thread anew. 1847Tennyson Princess Prol. 132, I wish I were Some mighty poetess, I would shame you then, That love to keep us children! 1859― Elaine 207 Nay, father,..shame me not Before this noble knight. 1889Barrie Window in Thrums xviii. 166 The love Leeby bore for Jamie was such that in their younger days it shamed him.
†b. refl. To be ashamed. Const. of, for, or inf.
a1250Owl & Night. 161 (Jesus MS.) Schomye [Cott. Schamie] þe vor þine vnrede. c1375Cato 573 in Minor Poems fr. Vernon MS. 603 Þat þou ne const, schome þe not Of oþere to ben I-tauht. 1526Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W. 1531) 64 And so he shameth hymselfe. 1825Scott Betrothed xxxi, ‘Rise, rise, De Lacy; and shame thee of thy petition,’ said the King.
c. pass. To be ashamed. Const. of, at, for, with, † upon, inf., or subord. clause. Now poet.
13..Cursor M. 636 (Gött.) Naked war þai bath tway, Þai were noght schamed par ma fay. c1374Chaucer Troylus v. 1727 For sory of his frendes sorwe he is, And shamed, for his nece hath doon a-mis. c1400Destr. Troy 8250 Than shamet was the shalke for the shene ladies. a1400–50Wars Alex. 469 So was scho schamed of þe schont þat hire þe shalk made. 1613–16W. Browne Brit. Past. i. ii. 31 The flowers pull'd in their heads as being sham'd Their beauties by the others were defam'd. 1815Scott Guy M. xxvi, He's sair shamed o' himsell. 1847Tennyson Princess iii. 35 Pardon, I am shamed That I must needs repeat for my excuse What looks so little graceful. 1877Browning Agamemnon 119 The opposite to say I shall not shamed be.
d. to tell (say, speak) the truth and shame the devil: to tell the truth boldly in defiance of temptation to the contrary.
1552Latimer Serm. Lincolnsh. iii. (1562) 85 b, There is a common saying amongst vs, Say the truthe and shame the diuel. 1562T. Wilson Rhet. 76 b, Saie on beast, and shame the deuil. 1596Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, iii. i. 58–9. 1598 ― Merry W. iv. ii. 124 Now shall the diuel be sham'd. 1658Bramhall Consecr. Bps. i. 7 Compell him..to shame the divell, and eate his owne words. 1731–8Swift Pol. Conversat. 93 Come, tell Truth, and shame the Devil. 1893G. Allen Scallywag I. 151 ‘Because he's so much richer’, Paul answered, boldly shaming the devil.
5. To inflict or bring disgrace upon; to disgrace, dishonour; to be a cause of disgrace to.
c1200Ormin 18284 Hefiȝlike he shameþþ þe & shendeþþ & unnwurrþeþþ. c1330R. Brunne Chron. Wace (Rolls) 15209 Þey wyþ tailles þe godeman schamed. c1386Chaucer Frankl. T. 837 Heer may I nat dwelle, And shamen al my kinrede in this place. 1398Trevisa Barth. De P.R. xv. xii. (1495) 492 Yf it happe that thou be ouercome thenne arte thou shamyd for euermore. 1530Palsgr. 701/1, I was of good name and fame afore he shamed me by this yvell reporte. 1556Olde Antichrist 64 b, This John..shamed the Churche of Rome wonderfully wt his lyuing. 1644Nye Gunnery (1670) 28 When Gunpowder is moist..it shameth the Gunner which useth it. 1667Milton P.L. i. 461 Where he fell flat, and sham'd his Worshipers. 1784Cowper Task ii. 807 Rusting there..What wonder if, discharg'd into the world, They shame their shooters with a random flight. 1820Byron Mar. Fal. iv. ii, Doge... Let us go worthy of our sires and selves. Ber. F. I shall not shame you, uncle. 1900Daily Tel. 18 Oct. 11/1 We tortured no prisoners,..we shamed no women.
b. with a thing as object.
a1340Hampole Ps. xiii. 10 Þe counsaile of þe helples ȝe shamed. 1581Marbeck Bk. of Notes 1124 S. Paule saith, yt euery man which prayeth or precheth wt couered head, shameth his head. 1784Cowper Task ii. 427 He..prostitutes and shames His noble office. 1812Byron Ch. Har. ii. viii, If..there be A land of souls beyond that sable shore, To shame the doctrine of the Sadducee. 1842Tennyson Lady Clare 66 O Lady Clare, you shame your worth! 1865Bushnell Vicar. Sacr. i. v. (1866) 71 The losses..that shame His saving work.
6. To confound or put to shame by superior excellence; to outrival.
c1400Rule of St. Benet (prose) 47 Bot we..þat er..of febil lif, þis gude lif schamis vs, and confundis. 1592Shakes. Ven. & Ad. 732 Wherein she framed thee in high heaven's despite, To shame the sun by day and her by night. 1611Second Maiden's Trag. 1741 (Malone Soc.) How pittie strikes een throughe inscensible thinges and makes them shame our dullnes. 1741Shenstone Judgm. Hercules 82 Her blushing cheeks, that sham'd the purple morn. 1841–44Emerson Ess., Nature Wks. (Bohn) I. 224 Here [in the forest] is sanctity which shames our religions. 1848Dickens Dombey lviii, She'll shame 'em with her good looks, yet.
7. With complementary adv. or advb. phr.: To drive away (etc.) through shame.
1596Shakes. 1 Hen. IV, iii. i. 61 And Ile be sworne, I haue power to shame him hence. c1644Cleveland Rebel Scot Poems (1659) 53 Hyperbolus by suffering did traduce The Ostracism, and sham'd it out of use. 1682D'Urfey Butler's Ghost 36 My Head's not such a thing of no worth, 'Tis to be sham'd away, and so forth. 1790Burke Fr. Rev. 53 You would have shamed despotism from the earth. 1859Habits of Gd. Society 52 The turbulent state of the country..leaving, when bloodshed was shamed back, the same deadly hatred.
b. To drive (one) out of, into (a state, course of action, etc.) through shame or fear of shame.
1679J. Goodman Penitent Pardoned iii. iv. (1713) 330 Railery may go about to shame him out of his course. c1680Beveridge Serm. (1729) II. 545 When the practice of others..shames you into a compliance with them. 1775Sheridan Rivals Epil., Shamed into sense,..Our beaux from gallantry would soon be wise. 1839Thirlwall Greece xlvi. VI. 81 Philip..shamed his son out of his suspicions by an indignant expostulation. 1878R. B. Smith Carthage 284 The considerable armament, which the news of Hannibal's triumphant progress through Italy had at last shamed the Carthaginians into raising for him.
Hence shamed ppl. a.
1508Kennedie Flying w. Dunbar 549 Defamyt, blamyt, schamyt, Primas Paganorum. a1586Sidney Arcadia iii. (Sommer) 319 No, shamed Musidorus, worthie for nothing, but to keepe sheepe. 1874A. O'Shaughnessy Music & Moonlight 125 In the shamed and the ruined love's stead. 1880Meredith Tragic Com. (1881) 275 With..secret aim, which he nursed like a shamed mother of an infant.
▪ III. shame
obs. form of shawm. |