Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Easily startled; timid.
- adjective Tending to avoid contact or familiarity with others; retiring or reserved.
- adjective Characterized by reserve or diffidence.
- adjective Distrustful; wary.
- adjective Not having a sufficient or specified amount, as of money.
- intransitive verb To move suddenly or draw back, as if startled or afraid.
- intransitive verb To avoid engaging in, treating, or discussing something.
- noun A sudden movement, as from fright; a start.
- intransitive verb To throw (something) with a swift motion; fling.
- intransitive verb To throw something with a swift motion.
- noun A quick throw; a fling.
- noun Informal A gibe; a sneer.
- noun Informal An attempt; a try.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Readily frightened away; easily startled; skittish; timid.
- Shrinking from familiarity or self-assertive-ness; sensitively timid; retiring; bashful; coy.
- Keeping away from some person or thing through timidity or caution; fearful of approaching; disposed to avoid: followed by of.
- Cautious; wary; careful: commonly followed by of or about.
- Elusive; hard to find, get at, obtain, or accomplish.
- Morally circumspect; scrupulous.
- Keen; piercing; bold; sharp.
- Sly; sharp; cunning.
- Scant. The wind is said to be shy when it will barely allow a vessel to sail on her course.
- Synonyms Diffident, shamefaced. See
bashfulness . - To shrink or start back or aside, as in sudden fear: said specifically of a horse.
- To avoid; shun (a person).
- noun A quick, jerking, or careless throw; a fling.
- noun A fling; a sneer; a gibe.
- noun A trial; an experiment.
- To fling; throw; jerk; toss.
- To throw off; toss or send out at random.
- To throw a missile; specifically, to jerk.
- Hence, in general, to lack; be short of: as, to be shy four dollars.
- noun In cricket, a ball thrown instead of bowled.
- noun A sudden start aside, as from fear, especially one made by a horse.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- intransitive verb To start suddenly aside through fright or suspicion; -- said especially of horses.
- transitive verb To throw sidewise with a jerk; to fling.
- noun A sudden start aside, as by a horse.
- noun A side throw; a throw; a fling.
- adjective Easily frightened; timid.
- adjective Reserved; coy; disinclined to familiar approach.
- adjective Cautious; wary; suspicious.
- adjective Slang Inadequately supplied; short; lacking.
- adjective (Poker), Slang owing money to the pot; -- in cases where an opponent's bet has exceeded a player's available stake or chips, but the player chooses to continue playing the hand before adding the required bet to the pot.
- adjective See under
Fight , v. i.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Easily frightened;
timid . - adjective Reserved; disinclined to familiar approach.
- adjective
Cautious ;wary ; suspicious. - adjective
Short ,insufficient orless than. - adjective
Embarrassed .
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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V. i.54 (121,7) [as shy, as grave, as just, as absolute] _As shy_; as reserved, as abstracted: _as just_; as nice, as exact: _as absolute_; as complete in all the round of duty.
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Most experts suggest that the term "shy" should not be used as a label.
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William Sears, a well-known author and pediatrician, feels very strongly that the term "shy" should be avoided.
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Los Angeles had lost a seventh game to Boston four times previously - but those teams didn't have Bryant, who's just one title shy of Michael Jordan's six rings after winning his second title without Shaquille O'Neal, his partner in the first three.
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Lee came into the game one win shy of matching the record set by Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez for the best start to a postseason career.
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Lee came into the game one win shy of matching the record set by Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez for the best start to a postseason career.
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They added Anderson to their O-line mix after losing Ogden, took care of rookie passer Joe Flacco, ran the ball solidly with a troika of backs and fell one win shy of reaching the Super Bowl.
Keepers of the blind side: Left tackles the new money position
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Lee came into the game one win shy of matching the record set by Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez for the best start to a postseason career.
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No matter how much cash the central bank pumps into the banking system, money isn't circulating to the broader economy as companies and individuals remain shy about borrowing, analysts say.
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Lee came into the game one win shy of matching the record set by Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez for the best start to a postseason career.
chained_bear commented on the word shy
In NYPD Blue usage, short for shyster.
October 29, 2008
alandriadenisewalker commented on the word shy
I haave no comment.
May 23, 2009
PossibleUnderscore commented on the word shy
My dear old doll! I was such a shy little thing that I seldom dared to open my lips, and never dared to open my heart, to anybody else.
-Charles Dickens Bleak House
July 26, 2009