Humiliating describes something that makes you feel deeply embarrassed or ashamed, especially in front of other people. When something is humiliating, it doesn't just make you blush for a moment: it makes you feel small, foolish, or worthless in a way that stings.

Getting a wrong answer in class might be embarrassing, but having classmates laugh at you and mock you for it would be humiliating. Tripping in the hallway is awkward, but having someone film it and share it with the whole school would be humiliating. The difference is that humiliating experiences attack your sense of dignity and self-respect.

Something can be humiliating even if no one intended to hurt you. Wetting your pants during a long test, forgetting your lines in the school play, or showing up to a party in costume when it wasn't actually a costume party: these are humiliating because they expose you to judgment or pity when you feel vulnerable.

The related verb is humiliate, meaning to cause someone to feel this way. A coach who mocks a player's mistakes instead of correcting them constructively is humiliating the player. When someone humiliates another person on purpose, they're trying to make them feel inferior.