imbarazzate

Imbarazzate is the feminine plural form of the Italian adjective imbarazzato, meaning embarrassed or awkward. It describes people or things that cause embarrassment, discomfort, or awkwardness, and agrees in gender and number with feminine plural nouns, as in situazioni imbarazzate (embarrassing situations) or espressioni imbarazzate (embarrassed expressions). The related feminine singular is imbarazzata, while the masculine forms are imbarazzato (singular) and imbarazzati (plural).

Etymology and usage context: imbarazzate derives from the noun imbarazzo, which denotes embarrassment or awkwardness, through the usual Italian process of turning a noun into an adjective with the suffix -ato. The word is commonly used in both spoken and written Italian to convey a state of self-consciousness or social discomfort. It is primarily attributive or predicative, as in una risposta imbarazzata or le situazioni imbarazzate.

Distinctions and related forms: imbarazzante is a related adjective meaning "embarrassing" and is used to describe something that causes embarrassment (una domanda imbarazzante). The form imbarazzate specifically refers to feminine plural subjects. Other related forms include imbarazzata (feminine singular), imbarazzato (masculine singular), and imbarazzati (masculine plural). When describing a person’s feeling, one would typically say Le ragazze erano imbarazzate; when describing a situation, si parla di una situazione imbarazzata.