1
as in timid
easily frightened
a shy cat who hid under the bed every time she heard any loud noise
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in withdrawn
not comfortable around people
a shy person who finds talking to anyone but a close friend to be an awkward and unpleasant experience
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in lacking
not coming up to an expected measure or meeting a particular need
the team is shy a couple of players because of illness
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in notorious
not respectable
she was nervous about being left alone in a shy bar in a bad section of town
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a shy person
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shy
Josh Dinner, Space.com, 25 June 2025
Understanding how shy Jones was, Morrison joined her for interviews and used her own literary capital (Sula had recently appeared to acclaim) to advocate for her work.
—Clint Smith, The Atlantic, 24 June 2025
Steve Kopack, NBC news, 3 June 2025
Though episodes typically got laughs out of his guests and listeners alike, Maron never shied away from heavy topics or dark corners.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 2 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for shy
Adjective
That number is currently counting upward from 675, and will reach just shy of 400 by the time the two-week Ax-4 mission returns to Earth.
—Josh Dinner, Space.com, 25 June 2025
Understanding how shy Jones was, Morrison joined her for interviews and used her own literary capital (Sula had recently appeared to acclaim) to advocate for her work.
—Clint Smith, The Atlantic, 24 June 2025
Verb
The food maker said Monday that customers are increasingly snatching up its condensed soups and mac-and-cheese offerings while shying away from snacks, a spending shift that partly echoes the depths of the pandemic.
—Steve Kopack, NBC news, 3 June 2025
Though episodes typically got laughs out of his guests and listeners alike, Maron never shied away from heavy topics or dark corners.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 2 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for shy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shy
Adjective
-
At the time, David was a bit timid around dogs and initially kept his distance.—
Jordan Greene,
People.com,
3 June 2025
-
In the film, Colin, a timid man is swept off his feet when Ray, an enigmatic, impossibly handsome biker takes him on as his submissive.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
29 May 2025
Adjective
-
Often, people that indulge in this type of culture are considered anti-social or withdrawn, a stereotype that has been passed around for years.—
Dominick Williams,
Kansas City Star,
26 June 2025
-
People become irritable, withdrawn, or hyper-independent.—
Barnaby Lashbrooke,
Forbes.com,
23 June 2025
Adjective
-
The singer, who’s notorious for being open and candid, shared that Ozempic was a part of her weight loss journey while on the Just Trish podcast.—
Elizabeth Ayoola,
Essence,
20 June 2025
-
Physiologically, these states of bodily outpourings are of course quite self-explanatory, given all the melting, leaking, sweating, salivating and squirting the Sapphic body is notorious for in the art of Sapphics of all genders throughout history.—
Siouxzi Connor
June 20,
Literary Hub,
20 June 2025
Verb
-
Udoka would’ve been another strong fit, but Houston never flinched.—
Kristian Winfield,
Hartford Courant,
11 June 2025
-
However, the 27-year-old right-hander barely flinched and casually walked off the field as soon as the play was over.—
Sean Neumann,
People.com,
4 June 2025
Adjective
-
But that hasn't stopped Chisholm, who is not bashful about adding chains and non-uniform colors to his look, from getting criticism.—
Ryan Morik,
FOXNews.com,
26 Mar. 2025
-
One time in particular, Fisher called him out for being a bit bashful about their Star Wars fame, Hamill recounted in a new interview on NPR's Fresh Air — like any good sister would.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
4 June 2025
Adjective
-
Al Bello/Getty Images Outside of the Giants' organization, expectations are low.—
Justin Grasso,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 June 2025
-
Does the Trump administration really want to sink that low?—
Louis Balsamo,
Baltimore Sun,
25 June 2025
Adjective
-
And while tariffs are likely to come up in individual sit-downs, world leaders were already aiming to avoid a public clash with Trump like the one that unfolded in the infamous 2018 photo, Lipsky said.—
Francesca Chambers,
USA Today,
16 June 2025
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With his infamous Scud and al-Husayn ballistic missiles, Saddam’s forces would bring the war to civilians in major Iranian cities like Tabriz, Isfahan, Shiraz, and, of course, Tehran.—
Paul Iddon,
Forbes.com,
16 June 2025
Verb
-
Because of rising wage inequality, more and more earnings have become concentrated above this tax limit and the tax base for Social Security has shrunk as a result, as my colleagues and I already discussed about a decade ago.—
Christian Weller,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2025
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That study has enrolled only nine patients, however, and the results so far show that just one patient’s tumor actually shrank, according to a recent scientific abstract.—
Benjamin Mazer,
The Atlantic,
17 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shy. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
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