shy

Meaning

Adj

1. Easily frightened; timid.
2. Reserved; disinclined to familiar approach.
3. Cautious; wary; suspicious.
4. (informal) Short, insufficient or less than.
5. Embarrassed.
6. (UK, US) Less likely to reveal whom they will vote for than average, chiefly in the context of the collective effect this has on polling accuracy.

Verb

1. (intransitive) To avoid due to caution, embarrassment or timidness.
2. (intransitive) To jump back in fear.
3. (transitive) To throw sideways with a jerk; to fling.
4. (Scotland, intransitive, transitive) To throw a ball with two hands above the head, especially when it has crossed the side lines in a football (soccer) match.
5. (Scotland) To hit the ball back into play from the sidelines in a shinty match.

Noun

1. An act of throwing.
2. A place for throwing.
3. A sudden start aside, as by a horse.
4. In the Eton College wall game, a point scored by lifting the ball against the wall in the calx.
5. (Scotland) A throw-in from the sidelines, using two hands above the head.
6. (Scotland) In shinty, the act of tossing the ball above the head and hitting it with the shaft of the caman to bring it back into play after it has been hit out of the field.
7. (archaic) A gibe; a sneer.

Opposite of

bold, brave, confident, courageous, adventurous, fearless, unshy, audacious, cheeky, brazen, gregarious, outgoing, forward#Adjective

Synonyms

bashful

timid

ashamed

modest

coy

embarrassed

diffident

timorous

reserved

fearful

😨

afraid

shamefaced

self-conscious

throw

retiring

withdrawn

shame

reticent

be ashamed

skittish

sheepish

fling

be bashful

reluctant

pusillanimous

unsociable

indecisive

demure

nervous

abashed

wild

be diffident

cowardly

flip

anxious

pitch

embarrass

abash

unsure

cautious

cast

faint-hearted

hesitant

startle

toss

silent

🔇

shot

skew

dash

💨

short

Translations

timide

schüchtern

timido

tímido

verlegen

verlegen

tímido

bedeesd

timide

scheu

ντροπαλός

beschroomd

bevangen

pauroso

😨

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ʃaɪ/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: shy

Inherited from Old English: sċēoh

Cognate with Saterland Frisian: skjou

Cognate with Dutch: schuw

Cognate with German: scheu

Cognate with Danish: sky

In summary

From Middle English shy (“shy”), from Old English sċēoh (“shy”), from Proto-West Germanic *skeuh (“shy, fearful”), from Proto-Germanic *skeuhaz (“shy, fearful”). Cognate with Saterland Frisian skjou (“shy”), Dutch schuw (“shy”), German scheu (“shy”), Danish sky (“shy”).
Etymology tree
Middle English shy
English shy