embarras
See also: embarrás
English
Etymology
From French embarras.
Pronunciation
- (UK) IPA(key): /ɒmbəˈɹɑː/
Noun
embarras (plural embarras)
- (now rare) Embarrassment; confusion, uncertainty. [from 17th c.]
- 1906, Henry James, letter, 17 November:
- I […] envy & sympathise—being in all sorts of embarrass now, myself, over the finish of many things.
- 1906, Henry James, letter, 17 November:
- (now rare) An embarrassment; an obstacle or hindrance. [from 17th c.]
- 1751, [Tobias] Smollett, chapter 43, in The Adventures of Peregrine Pickle […], volume II, London: Harrison and Co., […], published 1781, OCLC 316121541:
- [O]ne day in his way to the opera, his chariot was stopped by an embarras in the street, occasioned by two peasants, who having driven their carts against each other, quarrelled, and went to loggerheads on the spot.
-
- (now rare) Embarrassment; intense social awkwardness. [from 18th c.]
- (now rare, historical, Canada, US) Specifically, a clump of driftwood obstructing a waterway. [from 19th c.]
French
Etymology
From embarrasser (“embarrass”).
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ɑ̃.ba.ʁa/, /ɑ̃.ba.ʁɑ/
audio (file)
Noun
embarras m (plural embarras)
- embarrassment
- obstacle, hindrance
- lack of money
Antonyms
- débarras
- aisance
- désinvolture
Derived terms
- embarras du choix too many choices, an embarrassing wealth
References
- Nouveau Petit Larousse illustré. Dictionnaire encyclopédique. Paris, Librairie Larousse, 1952, 146th edition
Further reading
- “embarras”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.
Anagrams
- ambreras, barrâmes, brameras
Spanish
Verb
embarras
- second-person singular present indicative of embarrar