English
embarrassment
Embarrassment comes from French embarrasser ‘embarrass’, from Spanish embarazar ‘to impregnate, make pregnant’, and ultimately from Sumerian keš₂ ‘to bind’.
- Sumerianc. 3100–1800 BCEkeš₂transliteratedcuneiform keš₂, a transliteration‘to bind’
- Akkadianc. 2500–100 BCErakāsumtransliteratedcuneiform rakāsum, a transliteration
- Akkadian, derivedc. 2500–100 BCEmarkasutransliteratedcuneiform markasu, a transliteration
- Classical Syriacmodernܡܰܪܫܳܐmaršā
- Arabicc. 500–presentمَرَسَةmarasa‘rope, cable, hawser’
- Old Galician-Portuguesec. 1100–1500baraço
- Old Galician-Portuguese, derivedc. 1100–1500embaraçar
- Old Spanishc. 950–1500same form
- Spanishc. 1500–presentembarazar‘to impregnate, make pregnant’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentembarrasser‘embarrass’
- English1500–presentembarrass
- Englishearliest quotation 1785embarrassment
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Lineage
- Sumerianc. 3100–1800 BCEkeš₂transliteratedcuneiform keš₂, a transliteration‘to bind’
- Akkadianc. 2500–100 BCErakāsumtransliteratedcuneiform rakāsum, a transliteration
- Akkadian, derivedc. 2500–100 BCEmarkasutransliteratedcuneiform markasu, a transliteration
- Classical Syriacmodernܡܰܪܫܳܐmaršā
- Arabicc. 500–presentمَرَسَةmarasa‘rope, cable, hawser’
- Old Galician-Portuguesec. 1100–1500baraço
- Old Galician-Portuguese, derivedc. 1100–1500embaraçar
- Old Spanishc. 950–1500same form
- Spanishc. 1500–presentembarazar‘to impregnate, make pregnant’
- Frenchc. 1600–presentembarrasser‘embarrass’
- English1500–presentembarrass
- Englishearliest quotation 1785embarrassment
Earliest quotation: 1785, James Ridgway: “[…]and render them more intelligible than all the commentaries…”
A compound of embarrass + -ment
Every English word from Sumerian keš₂
Today it means
noun A state of discomfort arising from bashfulness or consciousness of having violated a social rule; humiliation.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Sumerian keš₂ / embarrassment