shy

1 of 5

adjective

ˈshī 

shier or shyer ˈshī(-ə)r  ; shiest or shyest ˈshī-əst 

1

: easily frightened : timid

2

: disposed to avoid a person or thing

publicity shy

3

: hesitant in committing oneself : circumspect

4

: sensitively diffident or retiring : reserved

also : expressive of such a state or nature

a shy smile

5

: secluded, hidden

6

: having less than the full or specified amount or number : short

just shy of six feet tall

7

: disreputable

gambling hells and shy saloons

—Blackwood's

shyly adverb

shyness noun

shy

2 of 5

verb (1)

shied; shying

intransitive verb

1

: to develop or show a dislike or distaste

—usually used with from or away from

an author who shies away from publicity

2

: to start suddenly aside through fright or alarm

shy

3 of 5

noun (1)

plural shies

: a sudden start aside (as from fright)

shy

4 of 5

verb (2)

shied; shying

intransitive verb

: to make a sudden throw

transitive verb

: to throw (an object) with a jerk : fling

shy

5 of 5

noun (2)

plural shies

1

: the act of shying : toss, throw

2

: a verbal fling or attack

3

: cockshy

Synonyms

Adjective

• fainthearted
• fearful
• fearsome
• mousy
• mousey
• scary
• skittish
• timid
• timorous
• tremulous

Choose the Right Synonym for shy

shy, bashful, diffident, modest, coy mean not inclined to be forward.

shy implies a timid reserve and a shrinking from familiarity or contact with others.

shy with strangers

bashful implies a frightened or hesitant shyness characteristic of childhood and adolescence.

a bashful boy out on his first date

diffident stresses a distrust of one's own ability or opinion that causes hesitation in acting or speaking.

felt diffident about raising an objection

modest suggests absence of undue confidence or conceit.

modest about her success

coy implies a pretended shyness.

put off by her coy manner

Examples of shy in a Sentence

Adjective

I was painfully shy as a teenager.

She was too shy to ask for help.

He gave her a shy smile.

Help yourself if you want more. Don't be shy.

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

While Russell, who is the granddaughter of country legend Loretta Lynn, was initially quite shy, but seemingly came to appreciate the thrill of performing on the show—and was sad for that chapter to close. —Melissa Locker, Southern Living, 16 May 2024

In terms of pure numbers, San Antonio got the nod, with just shy of 22,000 people moving in last year. —Chris Morris, Fortune, 16 May 2024

Mary was shy, and her mother enrolled her in acting, dancing and music classes. —Robert D. McFadden, New York Times, 11 May 2024

Anderson has 66 RBIs for the season, four shy of the single-season school record set last year by Jacob Christian. —Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 May 2024

On the market for just shy of $15 million, the home has been owned for over 25 years by Mark Talucci, chairman and co-founder of the Sak Group, one of the country’s largest lifestyle accessory companies. —Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 7 May 2024

Both figures fell well shy of average analyst estimates and underscored the challenge for the company that’s still reliant on aging hardware. —Takashi Mochizuki, Fortune Asia, 7 May 2024

Zillow places the typical home value in metro Denver at just shy of $561,000 in December. —Aldo Svaldi, The Denver Post, 5 May 2024

According to data from payroll services provider ADP, the median pay for professional services new hires is just shy of the $40,000 mark. —Orianna Rosa Royle, Fortune, 5 May 2024

Verb

The frame never shies away from physical intimacy, but its most emotionally intimate moments seem to occur between cuts, and between scenes, as the movie skips forward to dilemmas dictated by the plot — Can the two women escape together? —Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 17 May 2024

South Park has never been one to shy away from tackling, well, any topic. —Dory Jackson, Peoplemag, 15 May 2024

And at a moment of growing Democratic anger and unease over how Israel is conducting its devastating military response, Mr. Shapiro, 50 — who has no obligation to talk about foreign policy — has not shied away from expressing support for the country while criticizing its right-wing government. —Katie Glueck, New York Times, 11 May 2024

Young-adult fiction hasn’t shied away from post-apocalyptic takes, but the methods of destruction and salvation are varied: Meteors, volcanoes and futuristic war factions don’t stop humanity from seeking justice and finding heroes. —Omar L. Gallaga, Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2024

Mann, who worked for American Airlines in the 1970s and 1980s, said American historically has not shied away from competition at its major hubs. —Chase Jordan, Charlotte Observer, 2 May 2024

Still, Bell doesn’t shy away from sharing heartfelt sentiments about their relationship. —Erica Marrison, Peoplemag, 7 May 2024

Surprisingly, both DJs appeared to have shied away from the Kendrick Lamar and Drake diss tracks that have dominated both streaming and cultural conversations for the past few weeks. —Kyle Denis, Billboard, 7 May 2024

Still, Reed did not shy away from speaking in superlatives on Monday. —Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 4 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English schey, going back to Old English scēoh, going back to West Germanic *skeuh(w)a- (whence also Middle High German schiehe, schiech "timid, despondent," and, with alteration or variant ablaut, Middle Dutch scu, scouw "timid"), perhaps extended form of Indo-European *(s)keu̯(H)- "perceive, watch" — more at show entry 1

Verb (1)

derivative of shy entry 1

Noun (1)

derivative of shy entry 2

Verb (2)

of obscure origin

Noun (2)

derivative of shy entry 4

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (1)

1649, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun (1)

1791, in the meaning defined above

Verb (2)

1787, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Noun (2)

1791, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing shy

• coconut shy
• fight shy of
• gun-shy
• once bitten, twice shy
• shy (away) from
• shy bladder
• shy bladder syndrome
• work-shy

Kids Definition

shy

1 of 3 adjective

ˈshī 

shier or shyer ˈshī(-ə)r  ; shiest or shyest ˈshī-əst 

1

a

: easily frightened : timid

b

: not feeling comfortable around people : not wanting or able to call attention to oneself

2

: having less than a full or an expected amount or number

we were about ten dollars shy of our goal

shyly adverb

shyness noun

shy

2 of 3 verb

shied; shying

1

: to draw back in sudden dislike or distaste

shied from publicity

2

: to move quickly to one side in fright

the horse shied

shy

3 of 3 noun

plural shies

: a sudden move to one side