fight shy of

Idioms  

1. Avoid meeting or confronting someone, as in “I have ... had to fight shy of invitations that would exhaust time and spirits” (Washington Irving, Life and Letters, 1821). This usage may allude to a military reluctance to meet or engage with the enemy. [Late 1700s]

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Example Sentences

"It would change the whole face of British business. Investors would fight shy of firms that can't show they're ready," he says.

From BBC • Oct. 17, 2021

I don’t see him running an antiques shop in the Cotswolds but I would fight shy of killing him off.

From The Guardian • Jun. 27, 2020

Opera is expensive, and audiences often fight shy of contemporary works.

From Time • Oct. 21, 2014

The rest of the publishing industry may be in crisis: the Kindle generation may fight shy of spending more on an 800-page novel than on a kingsize Lion bar.

From The Guardian • Oct. 4, 2014

This angry owner of the dogs has taken his revenge, and will fight shy of your camp after this.

From Phil Bradley's Snow-shoe Trail The Mountain Boys in the Canada Wilds by Boone, Silas K.