coyly
Americanadverb
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in a hesitant or indirect manner.
The painting shows an eighteenth-century lady flirting with a coyly blushing young knight.
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in a shy or modest manner.
She read the note and thanked him coyly.
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in a way that shows usually insincere or affected reluctance.
When asked about the movie, she coyly replied, "It's a big secret; I’m not going to tell anybody."
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of coyly
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, an astute student of both politics and pop culture, has coyly alluded to the wedding chatter during press conferences.
From BBC ● Jul. 3, 2026
The result was more coyly cute than imaginatively witty.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 20, 2026
The title wraps itself coyly around its three tennis-star lead characters, aptly describing the personal and professional entanglements to come.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 13, 2025
A beaming Murray coyly waved his appreciation and thanked them for the reception.
From BBC ● Aug. 2, 2024
She has only the help- wanted signs and the want ads to go on, and most of these coyly refrain from mentioning numbers.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
