imbarazzoso

Imbarazzoso is an Italian adjective that denotes something capable of causing embarrassment or awkwardness. It can describe a person who appears socially uncomfortable, a situation that triggers discomfort, or an action that makes others feel self-conscious. The term is less common in everyday speech than imbarazzante, but is widely understood and used in both written and spoken Italian.

Etymology traces imbarazzoso to the noun imbarazzo (“embarrassment”) plus the suffix -oso, which yields adjectives expressing a quality. The feminine form is imbarazzosa and the masculine plural is imbarazzosi; the feminine plural is imbarazzose.

Usage notes: Imbarazzoso often conveys a slightly stronger sense of discomfort than imbarazzante in certain contexts, and it can appear in literary or expressive language. It is commonly applied to describe situations, remarks, or behavior that provoke embarrassment—for example, una domanda imbarazzosa (an embarrassing question) or un commento imbarazzoso (an embarrassing comment). It can also describe a person who gives off an awkward, self-conscious impression, although imbarazzante is frequently more common for such a sense.

See also: imbarazzo, imbarazzante, imbarazzarsi.