shy

¹ American  

[shahy] / ʃaɪ /

adjective

shyer, shier, shyest, shiest

1. bashful; retiring.

   Antonyms:

   forward

2. easily frightened away; timid.

   Antonyms:

   trusting

3. suspicious, distrustful, or wary (often used in combination): The studio made a huge mistake when they cast a horse-shy actor in the cowboy role.

   I am a bit shy of that sort of person.

   The studio made a huge mistake when they cast a horse-shy actor in the cowboy role.

   This particular inventor was known to be media-shy.

4. reluctant.

   She’s never been shy about asking to speak to the manager when she’s unhappy with customer service.

   Synonyms:

   chary, cautious, heedful

   Antonyms:

   willing, inclined, disposed

5. deficient.

   shy of funds.

6. short of a full amount or number; scant: He's pretty tall—just an inch shy of six feet.

   We're still a few dollars shy of our goal.

   He's pretty tall—just an inch shy of six feet.

7. (in poker) indebted to the pot.

8. not bearing or breeding freely, as plants or animals.

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verb (used without object)

shied, shying

1. (especially of a horse) to start back or aside, as in fear.

2. to draw back; recoil.

   Synonyms:

   shrink

   Antonyms:

   advance

noun

plural

shies

1. a sudden start aside, as in fear.

idioms

1. fight shy of, to keep away from; avoid.

   She fought shy of making the final decision.

shy ² American  

[shahy] / ʃaɪ /

verb (used with or without object)

shied, shying

1. to throw with a swift, sudden movement.

   to shy a stone.

   Synonyms:

   flip, cast, fling, pitch, toss

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noun

plural

shies

1. a quick, sudden throw.

2. Informal.

   1. a gibe or sneer.

   2. a try.

shy ¹ British  

/ ʃaɪ /

adjective

1. not at ease in the company of others

2. easily frightened; timid

3. (often foll by of) watchful or wary

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

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

6. informal (foll by of) short (of)

7. (in combination) showing reluctance or disinclination

   workshy

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verb

1. to move suddenly, as from fear

   the horse shied at the snake in the road

2. to draw back; recoil

noun

1. a sudden movement, as from fear

shy ² British  

/ ʃaɪ /

verb

1. to throw (something) with a sideways motion

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noun

1. a quick throw

2. informal a gibe

3. informal an attempt; experiment

4. short for cockshy

shy More Idioms  

More idioms and phrases containing shy

• bricks shy of a load
• fight shy of
• once bitten, twice shy

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Related Words

Shy, bashful, diffident imply a manner that shows discomfort or lack of confidence in association with others. Shy implies a constitutional shrinking from contact or close association with others, together with a wish to escape notice: shy and retiring. Bashful suggests timidity about meeting others, and trepidation and awkward behavior when brought into prominence or notice: a bashful child. Diffident emphasizes self-distrust, fear of censure, failure, etc., and a hesitant, tentative manner as a consequence: a diffident approach to a touchy subject.

Other Word Forms

• shyer
  noun
• shyly
  adverb
• shyness
  noun

Etymology

Origin of shy¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English (adjective) schei, sheu, sheouh “easily startled,” Old English scēoh “timid, fearful, shy”; cognate with Middle High German schiech; akin to Dutch schuw, German scheu; cf. eschew

Origin of shy²

First recorded in 1780–90; origin uncertain

Explanation

Making small talk is not much fun for a shy person. Shy means being nervous or reserved around other people, especially in a social situation. Someone who's extremely shy might blush or stammer when talking to a group of people. Shy can also mean "tending to avoid," like when someone is "camera shy," or if they "shy away" from being straightforward. The Old English root scēoh, "easily frightened," originally only referred to a horse, and came from a Germanic root meaning "scare."

Example Sentences

The company expects revenue to be down 2% to flat in the current quarter, however, with the midpoint of its outlook coming in shy of analysts’ expectations.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 5, 2026

Last season, I was quite shy and stuff and now I feel a bit more like a leader in the group.

From BBC • May 2, 2026

Total revenue grew 11.3% to $4.45 billion, but that came in a bit shy of the FactSet consensus of $4.46 billion.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 30, 2026

Apple delivered a "standout quarter" even though iPhone revenue came in just shy of expectations, according to Emarketer senior tech analyst Jacob Bourne.

From Barron's • Apr. 30, 2026

What could the boy Rowan, the shy, timid herder of the bukshah, have to say?

From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda

Related Words

• afraid
• apprehensive
• bashful
• cautious
• circumspect
• coy
• demure
• diffident
• fearful
• hesitant
• humble
• introverted
• modest
• nervous
• reluctant
• reticent
• self-effacing
• sheepish
• suspicious
• timid