shy1

[shahy] /ʃaɪ/
adjective, shyer or shier, shyest or shiest.
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.
verb (used without object), shied, shying.
9.
(especially of a horse) to start back or aside, as in fear.
10.
to draw back; recoil.
noun, plural shies.
11.
a sudden start aside, as in fear.
Idioms
12.
fight shy of, to keep away from; avoid:
She fought shy of making the final decision.
Origin
before 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
Related forms
shyer, noun
shyly, adverb
shyness, noun
Synonyms
1. 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. 4. heedful, cautious, chary. 10. shrink.
Antonyms
1. forward. 2. trusting. 4. careless. 10. advance.
British Dictionary definitions for fight shy of

shy1

/ʃaɪ/
adjective shyer, shyest, shier, shiest
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.
(foll by of) (informal, mainly US & Canadian) short (of)
7.
(in combination) showing reluctance or disinclination: workshy
verb (intransitive) shies, shying, shied
8.
to move suddenly, as from fear: the horse shied at the snake in the road
9.
usually foll by off or away. to draw back; recoil
noun (pl) shies
10.
a sudden movement, as from fear
Derived Forms
shyly, adverb
shyness, noun
Word Origin
Old English sceoh; related to Old High German sciuhen to frighten away, Dutch schuw shy, Swedish skygg

shy2

/ʃaɪ/
verb shies, shying, shied
1.
to throw (something) with a sideways motion
noun (pl) shies
2.
a quick throw
3.
(informal) a gibe
4.
(informal) an attempt; experiment
5.
short for cockshy
Derived Forms
shyer, noun
Word Origin
C18: of Germanic origin; compare Old High German sciuhen to make timid, Middle Dutch schüchteren to chase away
Word Origin and History for fight shy of

shy

adj.

late Old English sceoh "timid, easily startled," from Proto-Germanic *skeukh(w)az "afraid" (cf. Middle Low German schüwe, Dutch schuw, German scheu "shy;" Old High German sciuhen, German scheuchen "to scare away"). Uncertain cognates outside Germanic, unless in Old Church Slavonic shchuti "to hunt, incite." Italian schivare "to avoid," Old French eschiver "to shun" are Germanic loan-words. Meaning "lacking, short of" is from 1895, American English gambling slang. Related: Shyly; shyness.

v.

"to throw (a missile) with a jerk or toss," 1787, colloquial, of unknown origin and uncertain connection to shy (adj.). Related: Shied; shying.

"to recoil," 1640s, from shy (adj.). Related: Shied; shying.

Slang definitions & phrases for fight shy of

shy

noun

A usually criminal usurer; loan shark, shylock: a shy on East Houston who lent money/ I don't know who's got the markers. It's some shy (1970s+)


Related Abbreviations for fight shy of

Shy

Shy-Drager syndrome
Idioms and Phrases with fight shy of

fight shy of

Avoid meeting or confronting someone, as in “I have ... had to fight shy of invitations that would exhaust time and spirits” (Washington Irving, Life and Letters, 1821). This usage may allude to a military reluctance to meet or engage with the enemy. [ Late 1700s ]

shy

In addition to the idiom beginning with
shy
also see: