shy

shy ¹

 (shī)

adj. shi·er (shī′ər), shi·est (shī′ĭst) or shy·er or shy·est

1. Easily startled; timid: a shy deer.

2.

a. Tending to avoid contact or familiarity with others; retiring or reserved: a shy student who stayed in the back of the room.

b. Characterized by reserve or diffidence: a shy glance.

3. Distrustful; wary: shy of strangers.

4. Not having a sufficient or specified amount, as of money: was shy $100 on his rent; was two victories shy of the school record.

intr.v. shied (shīd), shy·ing, shies (shīz)

1. To move suddenly or draw back, as if startled or afraid: The horse shied at the loud sound.

2. To avoid engaging in, treating, or discussing something: "a film adaptation that would not shy away from the novel's controversial themes" (Scot French).

n. pl. shies (shīz)

A sudden movement, as from fright; a start.

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[Middle English schey, from Old English scēoh.]

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shy′er n.

shy′ly adv.

shy′ness n.

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shy ²

 (shī)

v. shied (shīd), shy·ing, shies (shīz)

v.tr.

To throw (something) with a swift motion; fling.

v.intr.

To throw something with a swift motion.

n. pl. shies (shīz)

1. A quick throw; a fling.

2. Informal A gibe; a sneer.

3. Informal An attempt; a try.

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[Perhaps from shy.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

shy

(ʃaɪ)

adj, shyer, shyest, shier or shiest

1. not at ease in the company of others

2. easily frightened; timid

3. (often foll by of) watchful or wary

4. (Card Games) poker (of a player) without enough money to back his bet

5. (Biology) (of plants and animals) not breeding or producing offspring freely

6. (foll by of) informal chiefly US and Canadian short (of)

7. (in combination) showing reluctance or disinclination: workshy.

vb (intr) , shies, shying or shied

8. to move suddenly, as from fear: the horse shied at the snake in the road.

9. (usually foll by: off or away) to draw back; recoil

n, pl shies

a sudden movement, as from fear

[Old English sceoh; related to Old High German sciuhen to frighten away, Dutch schuw shy, Swedish skygg]

ˈshyly adv

ˈshyness n

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shy

(ʃaɪ)

vb, shies, shying or shied

to throw (something) with a sideways motion

n, pl shies

1. a quick throw

2. informal a gibe

3. informal an attempt; experiment

4. (Games, other than specified) short for cockshy

[C18: of Germanic origin; compare Old High German sciuhen to make timid, Middle Dutch schüchteren to chase away]

ˈshyer n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

shy¹

(ʃaɪ)

adj. shy•er shi•er, shy•est shi•est, adj.

1. bashful; retiring.

2. easily frightened away; timid.

3. distrustful; wary: shy of publicity.

4. deficient: shy of funds.

5. short of a full amount or number: a few dollars shy of our goal.

v.i.

6. (esp. of a horse) to start back or aside in alarm.

7. to draw back; recoil.

n.

8. a sudden start aside, as in alarm.

[before 1000; early Middle English scheowe, Old English scēoh, c. Middle High German schiech; akin to Dutch schuw, German scheu; compare eschew]

shy′er, n.

shy′ly, adv.

shy′ness, n.

shy²

(ʃaɪ)

v. shied, shy•ing, v.t., v.i.

1. to throw with a swift, sudden movement.

n.

2. a quick, sudden throw.

3. a gibe or sneer.

[1780–90; orig. uncertain]

shy′er, n.

Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

shy

• demur, demure - Demur is the verb "to object or voice opposition," while demure is the adjective meaning "modest, shy."
• farouche - Means "sullen or shy in company."
• milquetoast - Comes from a comic strip character created in 1924 who was shy, timid, and unassertive.
• shrinking violet - Violets actually shrink as if they become shy, giving us this term.

Farlex Trivia Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.

shy

Past participle: shied
Gerund: shying

Imperative

shy

shy

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	shy - a quick throw; "he gave the ball a shy to the first baseman" throw - the act of throwing (propelling something with a rapid movement of the arm and wrist); "the catcher made a good throw to second base"
Verb	1.	shy - start suddenly, as from fright jump, startle, start - move or jump suddenly, as if in surprise or alarm; "She startled when I walked into the room"
	2.	shy - throw quickly throw - propel through the air; "throw a frisbee"
Adj.	1.	shy - lacking self-confidence; "stood in the doorway diffident and abashed"; "problems that call for bold not timid responses"; "a very unsure young man" unsure, diffident, timid
	2.	shy - short; "eleven is one shy of a dozen" colloquialism - a colloquial expression; characteristic of spoken or written communication that seeks to imitate informal speech insufficient, deficient - of a quantity not able to fulfill a need or requirement; "insufficient funds"
	3.	shy - wary and distrustful; disposed to avoid persons or things; "shy of strangers" wary - marked by keen caution and watchful prudence; "they were wary in their movements"; "a wary glance at the black clouds"; "taught to be wary of strangers"

Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

shy

adjective

1. timid, self-conscious, bashful, reserved, retiring, nervous, modest, shrinking, backward, coy, reticent, self-effacing, diffident, mousy He is painfully shy when it comes to talking to women.
timid forward, confident, assured, bold, cheeky, brash, fearless, pushy (informal), self-confident, self-assured

2. cautious, wary, hesitant, suspicious, reticent, distrustful, chary You should not be shy of having your say.
cautious rash, reckless, unsuspecting, unwary

verb

1. (sometimes with off or away) recoil, flinch, draw back, start, rear, buck, wince, swerve, balk, quail, take fright The horse shied as the wind sent sparks flying.

fight shy of something avoid, dodge, duck (out of) (informal), eschew, shirk Dermatologists fight shy of any question about hormones.

shy away from something shrink from, flinch from, fight shy of, baulk at, think twice about, recoil from, be averse to, have misgivings about We frequently shy away from making decisions.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

shy ¹

adjective

1. Not forward but reticent or reserved in manner:

backward, bashful, coy, demure, diffident, modest, retiring, self-effacing, timid.

2. Not enough to meet a demand or requirement:

deficient, inadequate, insufficient, scarce, short, under, wanting.

verb

To draw away involuntarily, usually out of fear or disgust:

blench, cringe, flinch, quail, recoil, shrink, start, wince.

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shy ²

verb

To send through the air with a motion of the hand or arm:

cast, dart, dash, fling, heave, hurl, hurtle, launch, pitch, shoot, sling, throw, toss.

Informal: fire.

noun

An act of throwing:

cast, fling, heave, hurl, launch, pitch, sling, throw, toss.

The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Translations

جَبانحَذِر، هَيّاب من، يَجْفَل منخَجولخَجُوليَقْفِز، يَسْتَديرُ جانِبا

plachýplašit sebázlivýnesmělýodměřený

genertkastrefuseresky

schüchternzurückhaltendbefangenscheuscheuen

ντροπαλόςσυνεσταλμένος

tímidovergonzosoasustadizocortoespantarse

ujo

timideapeurécraintifpeureuxprudent

stidljiv

ijedõsmegbokrosodik

fælastfeiminnstyggur

timidotiraretiro al coccolancioscansare

内気な

부끄럼 타는

baidytisbaikščiaibaikštumasbesišalinantis

biklskaunīgskautrīgsnedrošssatrūkties

verlegen

skylettskremtskvette

nieśmiały

tímido

робкий

sramežljiv

blyg

ขี้อาย

utangaççekingenkorkmakürkekürkmek

bẽn lẽn

腼腆的受惊害羞的易受惊的胆小的

shy

¹ [ʃaɪ]

A. ADJ (shyer (compar) (shyest (superl)))

1. (= nervous) [person] → vergonzoso, tímido; [smile] → tímido; [animal] → asustadizo, huraño
he was too shy to talk to anyone → era demasiado tímido para hablar con nadie
come on, don't be shy! → ¡venga, no seas tímido or no tengas vergüenza!
she went all shy when asked to give her opinion → le dio vergüenza cuando le preguntaron su opinión, le dio corte cuando le preguntaron su opinión (Sp)
they may feel shy about talking to her → puede que les dé vergüenza hablar con ella, puede que les dé corte hablar con ella (Sp)
she's shy of cameras → se siente cohibida delante de las cámaras
don't be shy of telling them what you think → no tengas miedo decirles lo que piensas
to be shy with people → ser tímido con la gente, sentirse cohibido con la gente
see also bite B1
see also camera-shy, fight C3
see also gun-shy

2.
shy of (esp US) (= short of) we're $65,000 shy of the → nos faltan 65.000 dólares para el millón de dólares que se necesitan
he's two months shy of 70 → le faltan dos meses para cumplir 70 años
he passed away two days shy of his 95th birthday → murió a dos días de cumplir los 95 años

B. VI [horse] → asustarse, espantarse (at de)

shy away VI + ADV

1. (lit) [horse] → asustarse, espantarse; [person] → asustarse

2. (fig) to shy away from sth → huir or rehuir de algo
to shy away from doing sth → tener miedo a hacer algo

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shy

² [ʃaɪ] (Brit) N (= throw) → tirada f
50 pence a shy → 50 peniques la tirada
to have a shy at sth → intentar dar a algo

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

shy

[ˈʃaɪ]

adj

(= timid) [person, smile, look] → timide

(= wary) to be shy of doing sth → hésiter à faire qch, ne pas oser faire qch
once bitten, twice shy → chat échaudé craint l'eau froide

vi
to shy away from doing sth → craindre de faire qch

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

shy

¹

adj (+er)

→ schüchtern; animal → scheu; don’t be shy → nur keine Hemmungen! (inf); to be shy of/with somebody → Hemmungen vor/gegenüber jdm haben; to be shy of or about doing something → Hemmungen haben, etw zu tun; to feel shy → schüchtern sein; don’t be shy of telling me if there’s anything you need → sagen Sie mir ruhig, wenn Sie etwas brauchen; to make somebody shy → jdn verschüchtern ? fight

(esp US inf: = short) we’re 3 dollars shy → wir haben 3 Dollar zu wenig; two days shy of his 95th birthday → zwei Tage vor seinem 95. Geburtstag

vi (horse) → scheuen (→ at vor +dat)

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shy

²

n (= throw) → Wurf m; to have or take a shy at something → nach etw werfen; to have a shy at something (fig) → sich an etw (dat) → versuchen; I’ll have a shy at it → ich kanns ja mal versuchen; to have a shy at doing something → etw zu tun versuchen

vt → werfen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

shy

[ʃaɪ]

1. adj (-er (comp) (-est (superl))) → timido/a; (unsociable) → schivo/a
to be shy of doing sth → esitare a fare qc
don't be shy of asking for... → non esitare a chiedere...
to fight shy of sth → tenersi alla larga da qc
to fight shy of doing sth → cercare in tutti i modi di non fare qc

2. vi (horse) to shy (at) → fare uno scarto (davanti a)
the horse shied at the noise → il cavallo ha fatto uno scarto quando ha sentito il rumore
to shy away from sth → evitare qc
to shy away from doing sth (fig) → rifuggire dal fare qc

3. vt (old) (throw) → scagliare

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

shy

(ʃai) – comparative ˈshyer or ˈshier: superlative ˈshyest or ˈshiest – adjective

1. lacking confidence in the presence of others, especially strangers; not wanting to attract attention. She is too shy to go to parties. skaam خَجول срамежлив tímido nesmělý schüchtern genert ντροπαλόςtímido, vergonzoso, reservado uje خجالتي ؛ محجوب ujo timideביישן संकोची sramežljiv, stidljiv félénk malu, pemalu feiminn timido 内気な 수줍어 하는 drovus kautrīgs; nedrošs malu verlegensjenert, blygnieśmiały شرميندنه: بې زړه: شرمناك، حياناك، ترند، tímido timid стеснительный nesmelý sramežljiv stidljiv blyg ขี้อาย utangaç 害羞的 боязкий; соромливий شرمیلا nhút nhát, bẽn lẽn 害羞的

2. drawing back from (an action, person etc). She is shy of strangers. skaam, skugter حَذِر، هَيّاب من، يَجْفَل من свенлив retraído bázlivý zurückhaltend genert δειλός, ανασφαλήςavergonzado eemalehoidev دوري حستن از arka mal à l'aiseנרתע शर्मीला plah, povučen tartózkodó enggan feiminn timoroso 恥かしがる 꺼리는 besišalinantis kautrīgs; kaunīgs malu schuwskvetten, sky, engstelig nieskory do kontaktów (z) شرميندنه retraído prevăzător робкий bojazlivý zadržan stidljiv blyg เลี่ยง; หนี çekingen 靦腆的 обережний, нерішучий محتاط cảnh giác, sợ 腼腆的

3. (of a wild animal) easily frightened; timid. Deer are very shy animals. skugter جَبان плашлив arisco plachý scheu sky δειλός, που τρομάζει εύκολα asustadizo, huraño kartlik جانور رمو arka craintif חוֹשֵש दब्बू bojažljiv, oprezan ijedős mudah kaget, ketakutan styggur diffidente, guardingo 憶病な 겁 많은 baikštus bikls; tramīgs penakut schuwskvetten, lettskremt, sky płochliwy شرميدونكى حيوان لكه آهو arisco fricos пугливый plachý plah plašljiv skygg ขี้กลัว ürkek 膽小的 полохливий ڈرنے ، بھڑکنے والا جانور nhát 胆小的，易受惊的

verb

(of a horse) to jump or turn suddenly aside in fear. The horse shied at the strangers. wegspring uit vrees يَقْفِز، يَسْتَديرُ جانِبا плаша се (кон) espantar-se plašit se scheuen springe til siden; refusere πηδώ ή γυρίζω απότομα από φόβο (για άλογο) espantarse ehmuma رم كردن säikkyä se cabrer לְהֵירָתַע בְּבֶהָלָה भड़काना, चौकाना, चमकना, से दूर भागना, से पीछे हटना plašiti se (konj) megbokrosodik mundur ketakutan fælast (fare uno scarto) あとずさりする 놀라 뒷걸음 치다 baidytis satrūkties menyorok schichtig opspringen skvette, bli sky for płoszyć się تورخوړل، ترېدل espantar-se a se cabra (înaintea) шарахаться splašiť sa vzpenjati se, izogibati se plašiti se skygga (ม้า) ตื่นตกใจ ürkmek, korkmak (馬等)受驚跳開 полохатися, лякатися اچانک خوف سے اچھل پڑنا ngừng lại, khựng lại （马等）受惊

ˈshyly adverb

skaam بِخَجَل срамежливо timidamente nesměle scheu genert ντροπαλά tímidamente, con timidez ujedalt از روي خجالت ujosti timidement בְּבַּיישָנוּת संकोच, शर्मीलापन से stidljivo, plašljivo félénken, bárortalanul dengan malu-malu, kemalu-maluan feimnislega timidamente はにかんで 수줍게 droviai, baikščiai kautrīgi; bikli dengan rasa malu verlegensjenert, blygt nieśmiało, płochliwie په شرميندونكې توګه timidamente timid, cu timiditate застенчиво nesmelo plaho stidljivo blygt, skyggt อย่างขี้อาย mahcup mahcup, çekinerek 膽怯地，害羞地 соромливо; нерішуче احتیاط سے nhút nhát, dễ hoảng sợ 胆怯地，害羞地

ˈshyness noun

skaamheid خَجَل срамежливост timidez nesmělost die Scheu generthed; skyhed ντροπαλότητα timidez ujedus كمرويي ujous timidité בַּיישָנוּת संकोच, संकुचाहट, शर्मीलापन plašljivost, stidljivost vadság, félénkség, bátortalanság; tartózkodás perasaan malu atau segan feimni timidezza はにかみ 수줍음 drovumas, baikštumas kautrība; biklums rasa malu verlegenheidsjenerthet, blyghet, skyhetnieśmiałość, płochliwość شرم، حيا: بې زړه توب timidez timiditate стеснительность nesmelosť plašnost stidljivost blygsel, blyghet, skygghet ความเขินอาย mahcupluk, çekingenlik 膽怯，害羞 боязкість; соромливість شرمیلا پن sự nhút nhát, tính dễ hoảng sợ 胆怯，害羞

Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

shy

→ خَجُول ostýchavý genert schüchtern ντροπαλός tímido ujo timide stidljiv timido 内気な 부끄럼 타는 verlegen sky nieśmiały tímido робкий blyg ขี้อาย utangaç bẽn lẽn 腼腆的

Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

shy

a. tímido-a, temeroso-a; cauteloso-a.

English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012

shy

adj tímido

English-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.