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Definitions for Shyness

[1] bashful; retiring.
[2] easily frightened away; timid.
[3] suspicious; distrustful: I am a bit shy of that sort of person.
[4] reluctant; wary.
[5] deficient: shy of funds.
[6] scant; short of a full amount or number: still a few dollars shy of our goal; an inch shy of being six feet.
[7] (in poker) indebted to the pot.
[8] not bearing or breeding freely, as plants or animals.
[9] (especially of a horse) to start back or aside, as in fear.
[10] to draw back; recoil.
[11] a sudden start aside, as in fear.
[12] fight shy of , to keep away from; avoid: She fought shy of making the final decision.
[13] not at ease in the company of others
[14] easily frightened; timid
[15] (often foll by of) watchful or wary
[16] poker (of a player) without enough money to back his bet
[17] (of plants and animals) not breeding or producing offspring freely
[18] (foll by of) informal , mainly US and Canadian short (of)
[19] (in combination) showing reluctance or disinclination workshy
[20] to move suddenly, as from fear the horse shied at the snake in the road
[21] (usually foll by off or away ) to draw back; recoil
[22] a sudden movement, as from fear
[23] to throw (something) with a sideways motion
[24] a quick throw
[25] informal a gibe
[26] informal an attempt; experiment
[27] short for cockshy

Words related to Shyness

shyreticence, modesty, insecurity, timidity, diffidence, demureness, apprehension, restraint, timidness, coyness, meekness, reserve

Words nearby Shyness

shyshuttlecraft, shvartze, shvernik, shwa, shwe-shwe, shy, shy away from, shy-drager syndrome, shylock, shymkent, shypoo

Origin of Shyness

1before 1000; late Middle English schey (adj.), early Middle English scheowe, Old English scēoh; cognate with Middle High German schiech; akin to Dutch schuw, German scheu; cf. eschew

Other words from Shyness

shy·er , noun
shy·ly , adverb
shy·ness , noun

Word origin for Shyness

C18: of Germanic origin; compare Old High German sciuhen to make timid, Middle Dutch schüchteren to chase away

Synonyms for Shyness

insecurity, modesty, reticence, timidity, apprehension, coyness, demureness, diffidence, meekness, reserve, restraint, sheepishness, timidness, timorousness