fremdschämen
/ˈfʁɛmtˌʃɛːmən/
der (masc.) die (fem.) das (neut.)
Underline = a spelling pattern that usually signals that gender.
Forms
- present
- schämt sich fremd
- past
- schämte sich fremd
- perfect
- hat sich fremdgeschämt
Meaning
-
to feel vicarious embarrassment on someone else's behalf (reflexively: sich fremdschämen)
Built from fremd (foreign, someone else's) + schämen (to be ashamed).
Made of
- fremd foreign, someone else's
- schämen to be ashamed
Usage notes
German for "cringing on someone else's behalf" — feeling embarrassed because of what another person did or said, even though you had nothing to do with it yourself.
Practice
1 What does fremdschämen mean?
to feel vicarious embarrassment on someone else's behalf (reflexively: sich fremdschämen)
2 Fill the gap: Ich habe mich ___, als er das sagte.
Full sentence: Ich habe mich fremdgeschämt, als er das sagte. (I felt so vicariously embarrassed when he said that.)
3 Which fingerprint chart matches fremdschämen?
fremdschämen: neutral register, academic frequency, general domain, neutral connotation.
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