shrinking violet
Americannoun
noun
Etymology
Origin of shrinking violet
First recorded in 1925–30
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.
SoftBank 9984 -12.53%decrease; down pointing triangle Group founder Masayoshi Son, after all, isn’t exactly a shrinking violet when it comes to wild ideas.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 27, 2026
"I always thought he'd be a future champion, but I've really seen him change from that shrinking violet who first stepped into my office," Warren reflects.
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2024
The centenarian is remembered by his friends as a man with “impeccable diction” and gentle spirit, but he was no shrinking violet.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 26, 2024
No shrinking violet, this performer, and neither is the woman she portrays.
From Salon ● Dec. 18, 2022
I mean his pa was purt close to Pap’s size and his ma wasn’t no shrinking violet of a woman neither.
From "The Journey of Little Charlie" by Christopher Paul Curtis
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.
