Me da vergüenza hablar en público en español.

I feel embarrassed to speak in public in Spanish.

Breakdown of Me da vergüenza hablar en público en español.

• yo: I
• en: in
• hablar: to speak
• español: Spanish
• el público: the public
• dar vergüenza: to feel embarrassed

Questions & Answers about Me da vergüenza hablar en público en español.

What does Me da vergüenza literally mean, and why is the verb dar used?

Literally, Me da vergüenza is:

• me = to me
• da = gives
• vergüenza = shame / embarrassment

So a very literal translation is: “It gives me embarrassment.”

In natural English we’d say: “I’m embarrassed” or “I feel embarrassed.”

Spanish often uses dar + a noun to talk about feelings or reactions caused by something:

• Me da miedo. = It scares me.
• Me da risa. = It makes me laugh.
• Me da hambre. = It makes me hungry.

Here, dar works a bit like “to cause / to make (someone feel something)”.

Who or what is the subject of da in this sentence?

Grammatically, the subject of da is vergüenza (a singular noun), so the structure is:

• (La) vergüenza me da. = Vergüenza gives to me.

In full, you could say:

• Hablar en público en español me da vergüenza.
  → Speaking in public in Spanish gives me embarrassment.

Here:

• Hablar en público en español = the cause
• vergüenza = the feeling (and grammatical subject of da)
• me = the indirect object (to me)

But in everyday speech, people just say Me da vergüenza [infinitive / thing].

Why is it hablar (infinitive) and not hablo or hablaré?

After Me da vergüenza, when you talk about an action in general, you use the infinitive:

• Me da vergüenza hablar en público.
  = I’m embarrassed to speak in public. (about the action itself)

Using a conjugated verb like:

• ❌ Me da vergüenza hablo en público.
  sounds incorrect in Spanish.

Instead, to put it in a more personal, conjugated form, you would rephrase:

• Me da vergüenza cuando hablo en público.
  = I get embarrassed when I speak in public.

So:

• Infinitive = “to do X” / “doing X” in general
• Conjugated verb = usually after something like cuando, si, etc.

Why is it hablar en público and not hablar de público?

In Spanish:

• hablar en público = to speak in public (in front of people)
• en is used for locations or situations

Using de changes the meaning:

• hablar de… = to talk about something
  
  • hablar de política = to talk about politics
  • hablar de ti = to talk about you

So:

• Me da vergüenza hablar en público.
  = I’m embarrassed speaking in front of an audience.
• Me da vergüenza hablar de esto en público.
  = I’m embarrassed to talk about this in public.

Why is it hablar en público en español and not hablar español en público? Are both correct?

Both are grammatically correct; the difference is nuance/emphasis.

1. hablar en público en español

   • Focus on the situation first (public speaking) and then the language.
   • Sounds like: public speaking is hard, and on top of that, it's in Spanish.

2. hablar español en público

   • Focus more on the language first (speaking Spanish) and then that it happens in public.
   • Slightly more emphasis on using Spanish specifically.

In normal conversation, both are fine. Many speakers might even shorten to:

• Me da vergüenza hablar español en público.

What’s the difference between Me da vergüenza, Tengo vergüenza, and Estoy avergonzado/a?

All relate to embarrassment or shame, but they differ in naturalness and nuance:

1. Me da vergüenza [algo].

   • Very common and idiomatic.
   • Focuses on the cause:
     
     • Me da vergüenza hablar en público.
       = Speaking in public embarrasses me.

2. Tengo vergüenza.

   • Possible, but much less common in many contexts.
   • Sounds a bit like “I have shame,” or “I’m feeling shy/ashamed.”
   • More natural with de
     • noun/verb:
       
       • Tengo vergüenza de lo que hice.
         = I’m ashamed of what I did.

3. Estoy avergonzado/a.

   • More direct: “I’m embarrassed / ashamed.”
   • Describes your state more than the cause:
     
     • Estoy avergonzado de mi pronunciación.
       = I’m embarrassed about my pronunciation.

In everyday Latin American Spanish, for this exact idea, Me da vergüenza… is extremely common and natural.

Can I say Me avergüenza hablar en público en español instead? Is it different?

Yes, you can say:

• Me avergüenza hablar en público en español.

This uses the verb avergonzar (to shame / to embarrass), with:

• me = direct object (it embarrasses me)

Nuance:

• Me da vergüenza…
  
  • More colloquial and very frequent in everyday speech.
• Me avergüenza…
  
  • Sounds a bit more formal or stronger, like “It shames me / I find it shameful.”

In casual conversation, Me da vergüenza… is usually more natural.

Is Me da vergüenza a reflexive structure? What is me exactly?

No, it’s not reflexive here.

• me is an indirect object pronoun meaning “to me / for me”.

Structure:

• [algo] da vergüenza a [persona].
  → Hablar en público en español da vergüenza a mí.
  → Hablar en público en español me da vergüenza.

Compare:

• Me da miedo. = It scares me.
• Me da tristeza. = It makes me sad.

Reflexive would look like:

• Me avergüenzo. = I’m ashamed / I get embarrassed.
  (Here me is reflexive, and the verb is avergonzarse.)

How would I say “They embarrass me” or “He embarrasses me” using vergüenza?

You can keep the same pattern:

• Él me da vergüenza.
  = He embarrasses me / I’m embarrassed because of him.

• Ellos me dan vergüenza.
  = They embarrass me.

Note:

• The verb dar agrees with the subject:
  
  • Él me da… (singular)
  • Ellos me dan… (plural)

Don’t say:

• ❌ Me da vergüenza ellos.

If you want to use avergonzar:

• Él me avergüenza. = He embarrasses me.
• Ellos me avergüenzan. = They embarrass me.

What’s the difference between vergüenza and pena in Latin America?

Both can relate to embarrassment, but usage varies by country.

• vergüenza

  • Core meaning: shame / embarrassment.
  • Used widely in all Spanish varieties.
  • Me da vergüenza hablar en público.

• pena

  • Can mean:
    • pity / sadness:
      
      • Me da pena verlo así. = I feel sorry seeing him like that.
    • embarrassment / shyness (very common in Mexico and some other countries):
      
      • Me da pena hablar en público. = I feel shy/embarrassed speaking in public.

In many parts of Latin America, especially Mexico:

• Me da pena and Me da vergüenza can both mean “I feel shy/embarrassed.”

Context and country matter, but vergüenza is the safer, more universal choice for “embarrassment.”

How do you pronounce and spell vergüenza, especially the ü?

Spelling:

• vergüenza has a diacritic (¨) over ü: ü
• That mark is called “diéresis”.

Pronunciation (Latin American standard):

• ver- = like “bear” but with a b/v sound at the start.
• güen = “gwen” (like the name Gwen).
  
  • The ü ensures the u is pronounced: /gw/.
• -za = like “sa” or soft “tha” depending on country:
  
  • Most of Latin America: /sa/ → ver-GWEN-sa.

Without the ü:

• vergüenza → /ber-GWEN-sa/
• vergüenza spelled vergüenza is correct; verguenza is a spelling mistake.

Does vergüenza here mean deep shame, or just being shy/embarrassed?

In this sentence, vergüenza usually means shyness / embarrassment, not heavy moral shame.

• Me da vergüenza hablar en público en español.
  → I feel self-conscious, shy, or embarrassed about it.

For strong moral shame (feeling you did something really wrong), context or stronger wording would usually make that clear:

• Siento mucha vergüenza por lo que hice.
  = I feel a lot of shame for what I did.
• Estoy muy avergonzado de mi comportamiento.
  = I’m very ashamed of my behavior.

Here, with hablar en público en español, it’s naturally interpreted as social embarrassment / shyness about speaking the language in front of others.