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Glite Dictionary
😶 Avoiding shame 😶 An act to avoid shame
face-saving

face-saving

1 6.0
An action to help someone avoid embarrassment
  • noun
  • /ˈfeɪsˌseɪvɪŋ/
translation icon : medida que salva la cara
  • In negotiations, he proposed a face-saving solution that would allow both parties to maintain their dignity.

Examples

  • All of which is to say that today's announcement (the "all-digital" bit, that is, not the killing-off-print bit, which was simply inevitable) is basically an exercise in face-saving.

    Blog text (2)

  • President Bush said that the meeting "would not include negotiations, compromise, face-saving, or rewards for aggression."

    Academic text (1991)

  • What is needed here is a face-saving line they can be presented with.

    Blog text (8)

  • Both he and President Bush had taken great care to leave plenty of face-saving room for Moscow.

    Academic text (1990)

  • You know, we're the team that we put up around him because we work a good team and we get to the point where he's found a face saving way to surrender.

  • What it must not mean is a face-saving advisory effort that leaves our men and their advisees with inadequate support.

    Blog text (2)

  • If Erdogan wins, as most analysts now expect, the question is can he find a face saving way to pivot to a more sensible economic policy?

  • Dell's director of corporate affairs in Brazil, Fernando Loureiro, devised a face-saving strategy for the governor to allow Dell to keep its incentives.

    Academic text (2005)

  • The company implemented a face-saving measure to avoid losing customers after the scandal.

  • She offered a face-saving excuse for being late to avoid embarrassment in front of her colleagues.

Synonyms

face saver
vsface-saving
  • Informal
5.8

Something that helps a person avoid embarrassment or loss of respect

is a slightly more formal term focusing on deliberate actions or measures

Antonyms

embarrassment
219 3.1

A feeling of awkwardness or shame

exposure
88 3.9

Making a secret or hidden thing known to people

How Dignifying

apology
671 1.0
face-saving
1 6.0
misstep
44 5.3
embarrassment
219 3.1
humiliation
  • Offensive
148 4.2

Surface Forms

face-saving singular
face-savings plural

Morphology

face-saving = face + save (semi-transparent) = face + save + ing

The noun is formed from the same compound 'face' + 'save' (+ '-ing'); its interpretation depends on the idiom 'save face' rather than a purely literal reading.

Etymology

Face-saving as a noun comes from the same idea of save face, meaning to protect your face or 'public respect'. A face-saving measure is an action taken so people do not feel embarrassed and can keep their dignity.