Forgetting people's names and unsightly sweat patches are among the most common faux pas that leave Britons blushing with embarrassment four times a day.

Tripping in public and getting food stuck between teeth are also humiliating moments that most try hard to avoid and one in seven say a relationship has ended because something embarrassing happened.

A study of 2,000 adults found that burping accidentally, stalling the car at traffic lights and having food on your face are among the top 50 most common moments that leave us red faced.

Commissioned by Ladbrokes, the research found that the biggest embarrassments were most likely to have been in the workplace while stories involving things going wrong in front of the in-laws were also very common.

A Ladbrokes spokesman said: ‘Everyone does their best to be composed and cool wherever they are, but it isn’t always going to work and clearly there are many pitfalls.

‘The good thing is once the awkwardness clears the little things that throw us can eventually be looked back on and laughed about.’

A fifth of people have had a public speaking nightmare that they would rather forget and the most embarrassing speaking blunder is having your voice break or squeaking high pitched unexpectedly.

And one in seven Britons have been so embarrassed that they have fled a room to avoid the awkward stares.

The spokesman said: ‘The good thing about this list is no one is immune and we’re all guilty of having done at least some of these things.

‘We don’t always bring them on ourselves of course, so it’s worth being aware of particular mates or people who might look to embarrass you when you’re off guard.

‘Certain situations have more potential for embarrassment than others of course but the thing to take remember from all of it is there’s no point taking yourself too seriously.

‘Look down the list and the results show there are many things that we can all relate to and some might have more embarrassing memories than others.

'With hindsight they can even be quite funny, even if at the time you just wanted the ground to swallow you up.’

(Read by Rosie Tuck. Rosie Tuck is a journalist at the China Daily Website.)

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(Agencies)