shy

shy adj Shy, bashful, diffident, modest, coy can mean showing disinclination to obtrude oneself in the presence or company of others.

Shy implies a shrinking, sometimes constitutional, sometimes the result of inexperience, from familiarity or contact with others; shyness usually manifests itself in a certain reserve of manner or in timidity in approaching others

{

the savage ... is a shy person, imbued with the notion that certain things are not to be talked of to strangers— Inge

}

{

shy in the presence of strangers and bold with people she knew well— Anderson

}

Bashful implies an instinctive or constitutional shrinking from public notice that usually expresses itself in awkwardness of demeanor and is especially characteristic of childhood and adolescence; as applied to mature persons it connotes abnormal or excessive shyness and lack of savoir faire

{

he hesitated, awkward and bashful, shifted his weight from one leg to the other— London

}

{

as he grew up, he became increasingly bashful, and he never had a close friend of either sex— Donovan

}

Diffident implies a distrust, which may or may not be warranted, of one's own ability, opinions, or powers that gives rise to hesitation in their exercise

{

he was conservative and diffident by nature, and even after all these years he felt tongue-tied in the presence of those stricken by grief— Styron

}

Modest, without implying self-distrust, may denote an absence of all undue confidence in oneself or one's powers

{

the most modest, silent, sheepfaced and meek of little men— Thackeray

}

but often it stresses not an inner lack of confidence but a manner free from brashness, boldness, and self-assertiveness

{

stood at ease . . . with the modest air of a man who has given his all and is reasonably assured it is enough— Wolfe

}

{

Entirely natural, modest, and unaffected in manner— Eliot Clark

}

Coy suggests assumed or affected shyness, often with the further implication of coquetry

{

I was vexed, and resolved to be even with her by not visiting the wood for some time. A display of indifference on my part would, I hoped, result in making her less coy in the future— Hudson

}

{

without being in the least coy, Mrs. Gross displayed a certain half smiling modesty—Terry Southern

}

Analogous words: *timid, timorous: wary, chary, *cautious, circumspect

Antonyms: obtrusive

shy vb balk, boggle, scruple, *demur, jib, stickle, stick, strain

Analogous words: *recoil, shrink, quail, blench: *hesitate, waver, falter, vacillate