Ashamed is most commonly followed by of. Other prepositions can appear in specific contexts, but they do not all work in the same way.
Use ashamed of to say what causes shame. Ashamed for can mean feeling shame on behalf of someone else. Ashamed about is sometimes used, especially before situations or actions, but of is more standard. At and before are uncommon directly after ashamed.
These forms are not interchangeable. Choose the construction by meaning, not by which preposition appears most often.
Of is the standard preposition after ashamed.
For is used when you feel shame because of another person's actions.
About is possible, especially in conversational English, but of is usually more direct and standard.
Before can introduce the people in front of whom someone feels shame. It is not the adjective's main complement.
The same subject can take different constructions because each sentence answers a different question.
Some combinations appear in real text but do not mean what learners often assume.
Use ashamed of for your own actions or qualities.
✕ ashamed for my behaviour ✓ ashamed of my behaviourAt is much less common than of after ashamed.
✕ ashamed at his lies ✓ ashamed of his liesBefore shows the audience, not the reason for shame.
✕ ashamed before the mistake ✓ ashamed of the mistakeChoose the expression that matches the intended meaning.
Paste the complete sentence below. Linguix checks the preposition together with grammar, spelling, punctuation, and style.
Yes. Ashamed of is the standard and most widely used construction.
Yes. It is used in conversational English, especially for situations, although ashamed of is usually preferred.
It means you feel embarrassment or shame because of another person's behaviour.
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