Sentence:  The stare seemed to <WSD>abash</WSD> Poirot. 
Meaning of the word marked with <WSD> tags:  To make ashamed; to embarrass; to destroy the self-possession of, as by exciting suddenly a consciousness of guilt, mistake, or inferiority; to disconcert; to discomfit. (First attested from around (1150 to 1350).)<ref name=SOED/>