Some American words simply don’t translate.

To simplify linguistics, some words have too much history, culture, connotation and popularity associated to the word to make a simple word for word substitution.

Self-Conscious:

1. a :  conscious of one’s own acts or states as belonging to or originating in oneself :  aware of oneself as an individual

b :  intensely aware of oneself :  conscious a rising and self–conscious social class; also :  produced or             done with such awareness

2.  uncomfortably conscious of oneself as an object of the observation of others :  ill at ease

1. Complexé(e): “hung up” 

Someone who is inhibited by their own psychological baggage.

This is the best definition for me, but it’s still not quite it. One time at university in France, I was joking with a professor in office hours that I had social anxiety. Rather than laugh she gave me a serious and somewhat shocked look. Maybe the French just don’t get flustered

2. Gêné(e): “embarassed”

Not quite but close. Embarrassment usually stems from an action. I like this word, however, because it relates to the situation well. un silence gêné is an awkward silence

3. être mal à l’aise : “Not at ease”

This is an interesting expression, it’s more like to be uncomfortable. To be clear, it’s more like something or someone is making you uncomfortable.

4. embarrassé(e) : “annoyed” and “embarassed”

This one is interesting, it’s 1. annoyed and 2. embarassed. To be honest, this one is a little bit of a ‘faux amis’ (doesn’t translate directly) because the meaning is a bit more complex than simply “embarassed” in english.

Like many words in french, english is simply too broad. Once you become more comfortable in French, you can choose a precise word. However, in the meantime you’ll be self-conscious about which word you decide upon.

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