| No. | Item | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | ado | fuss or commotion |
| 2. | affair | notorious incident or episode |
| 3. | bad press | negative media attention |
| 4. | bad publicity | harmful public attention |
| 5. | blowup | sudden public conflict or uproar |
| 6. | blunder | serious embarrassing mistake |
| 7. | bomb | shocking revelation or failure |
| 8. | bombshell | shocking revelation or event |
| 9. | brouhaha | noisy reaction or fuss |
| 10. | business | informal troubling affair |
| 11. | can of worms | messy troublesome matter |
| 12. | case | particular troubling matter |
| 13. | catastrophe | disastrous and embarrassing event |
| 14. | cause célèbre | famous controversial issue |
| 15. | circus | chaotic embarrassing public affair |
| 16. | commotion | disturbance caused by controversy |
| 17. | contretemps | awkward and embarrassing incident |
| 18. | controversy | public dispute causing shock or anger |
| 19. | debacle | shameful and disastrous situation |
| 20. | deception | act of misleading others |
| 21. | dirty laundry | private shame made public |
| 22. | dirty work | dishonorable actions |
| 23. | disaster | very bad public mess |
| 24. | disgrace | event causing shame or dishonor |
| 25. | dishonor | loss of honor through misconduct |
| 26. | disrepute | state of public disgrace |
| 27. | embarrassing affair | shameful public matter |
| 28. | embarrassment | source of public shame |
| 29. | episode | notable event or occurrence |
| 30. | exposure | public revelation of wrongdoing |
| 31. | fiasco | humiliating failure or mess |
| 32. | firestorm | sudden intense public controversy |
| 33. | flap | informal public controversy |
| 34. | flashpoint | issue sparking public outrage |
| 35. | fracas | noisy quarrel or disturbance |
| 36. | fraud | deceptive wrongdoing for gain |
| 37. | furor | intense public anger or excitement |
| 38. | furore | sudden public anger or excitement |
| 39. | gaffe | embarrassing public mistake |
| 40. | headline-maker | event attracting major attention |
| 41. | hornet’s nest | source of angry controversy |
| 42. | hot potato | controversial difficult issue |
| 43. | hullabaloo | noisy public fuss |
| 44. | humiliation | publicly shameful situation |
| 45. | ignominy | public shame or disgrace |
| 46. | imbroglio | complicated embarrassing situation |
| 47. | impropriety | improper or inappropriate conduct |
| 48. | incident | notable troubling event |
| 49. | indiscretion | imprudent act causing embarrassment |
| 50. | infamy | notorious bad reputation or deed |
| 51. | jaw-dropper | astonishing shocking event |
| 52. | kerfuffle | informal commotion or fuss |
| 53. | lapse | temporary failure of judgment |
| 54. | leak | damaging unauthorized disclosure |
| 55. | malfeasance | wrongdoing by an official |
| 56. | matter | particular issue or affair |
| 57. | media storm | intense press controversy |
| 58. | meltdown | public collapse into chaos |
| 59. | mess | troubling and embarrassing situation |
| 60. | misbehavior | bad or improper conduct |
| 61. | misconduct | improper behavior |
| 62. | misstep | publicly damaging mistake |
| 63. | monkey business | informal dishonest activity |
| 64. | negative publicity | unfavorable public attention |
| 65. | notoriety | fame for something bad |
| 66. | obloquy | strong public abuse and disgrace |
| 67. | odium | widespread public hatred or blame |
| 68. | offense | wrongful or improper act |
| 69. | opprobrium | public disgrace and condemnation |
| 70. | outrage | shocking or offensive affair |
| 71. | palaver | fuss over a matter |
| 72. | powder keg | issue likely to explode |
| 73. | public disgrace | open shame before others |
| 74. | public shame | open humiliation or disgrace |
| 75. | reproach | cause of blame or shame |
| 76. | revelation | shocking disclosure of wrongdoing |
| 77. | row | British noisy public dispute |
| 78. | ruckus | noisy disturbance or fuss |
| 79. | rumpus | noisy disturbance or uproar |
| 80. | sensation | widely noticed shocking event |
| 81. | shambles | state of chaotic disgrace |
| 82. | shame | dishonorable or embarrassing matter |
| 83. | soap opera | dramatic ongoing public affair |
| 84. | stigma | mark of disgrace |
| 85. | stink | informal public scandal or fuss |
| 86. | stir | public excitement or fuss |
| 87. | storm | sudden public uproar |
| 88. | tabloid fodder | material for sensational coverage |
| 89. | taint | trace of shame or corruption |
| 90. | to-do | fuss over a troubling matter |
| 91. | train smash | British disastrous public mess |
| 92. | train wreck | disastrous public mess |
| 93. | transgression | act breaking a rule |
| 94. | travesty | shamefully bad affair |
| 95. | trouble | difficulty involving blame or shame |
| 96. | underhandedness | secretly dishonest behavior |
| 97. | unmasking | revealing hidden wrongdoing |
| 98. | uproar | noisy public reaction to misconduct |
| 99. | violation | act breaking a rule or norm |
| 100. | wrongdoing | bad or illegal behavior |