Meanings
- uncountableThe condition or state of being shamefast.
1 more example
This lokyng about of Jeſus, was a geſture of hym that courteouſly requyred a confeſſion of the benefite receiued. He woulde not vtter her by name, leſte he ſhoulde haue ſemed to haue hit her in the teethe, wyth the good turne he dyd her. The woman, of a womanlye ſhamefaſteneſſe, and not of any vnthankfullneſſe, helde her peace.
1549 February 10 (Gregorian calendar; indicated as 1548), Erasmus, “The Paraphrase of Erasmus vpon the Gospell of Sainct Marke. The .v. Chapter.”, in Thomas Key [i.e., Thomas Caius], transl., The First Tome or Volume of the Paraphrase of Erasmus vpon the Newe Testamente, London: […] Edwarde Whitchurche, →OCLC, folios xxxix, recto – xxxix, verso
Origin
- Old Englishsċeamfæstness“modesty”
- Middle Englishschamefastnesse
- Englishshamefastness
From Middle English schamefastnesse, from Old English sċeamfæstness (“modesty”), equivalent to shamefast + -ness.
More words from Middle English, Old English
Full word history & related roots →Cite this entry
shamefastness. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shamefastness
“shamefastness.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shamefastness. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “shamefastness,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/shamefastness.
Source: shamefastness on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.