'Shy' definitions:

Definition of 'shy'

From: WordNet
adjective
Lacking self-confidence; "stood in the doorway diffident and abashed"; "problems that call for bold not timid responses"; "a very unsure young man" [syn: diffident, shy, timid, unsure] [ant: confident]
adjective
Short; "eleven is one shy of a dozen"
adjective
Wary and distrustful; disposed to avoid persons or things; "shy of strangers"
noun
A quick throw; "he gave the ball a shy to the first baseman"
verb
Start suddenly, as from fright
verb
Throw quickly

Definition of 'Shy'

From: GCIDE
  • Shy \Shy\, v. t. To throw sidewise with a jerk; to fling; as, to shy a stone; to shy a slipper. --T. Hughes. [1913 Webster]

Definition of 'Shy'

From: GCIDE
  • Shy \Shy\, n.
  • 1. A sudden start aside, as by a horse. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. A side throw; a throw; a fling. --Thackeray. [1913 Webster]
  • If Lord Brougham gets a stone in his hand, he must, it seems, have a shy at somebody. --Punch. [1913 Webster]

Definition of 'Shy'

From: GCIDE
  • Shy \Shy\ (sh[imac]), a. [Compar. Shier (sh[imac]"[~e]r) or Shyer; superl. Shiest or Shyest.] [OE. schey, skey, sceouh, AS. sce['o]h; akin to Dan. sky, Sw. skygg, D. schuw, MHG. schiech, G. scheu, OHG. sciuhen to be or make timid. Cf. Eschew.]
  • 1. Easily frightened; timid; as, a shy bird. [1913 Webster]
  • The horses of the army . . . were no longer shy, but would come up to my very feet without starting. --Swift. [1913 Webster]
  • 2. Reserved; coy; disinclined to familiar approach. [1913 Webster]
  • What makes you so shy, my good friend? There's nobody loves you better than I. --Arbuthnot. [1913 Webster]
  • The embarrassed look of shy distress And maidenly shamefacedness. --Wordsworth. [1913 Webster]
  • 3. Cautious; wary; suspicious. [1913 Webster]
  • I am very shy of using corrosive liquors in the preparation of medicines. --Boyle. [1913 Webster]
  • Princes are, by wisdom of state, somewhat shy of thier successors. --Sir H. Wotton. [1913 Webster]
  • 4. Inadequately supplied; short; lacking; as, the team is shy two players.[Slang] [Webster 1913 Suppl.]
  • 5. (Poker), owing money to the pot; -- in cases where an opponent's bet has exceeded a player's available stake or chips, but the player chooses to continue playing the hand before adding the required bet to the pot. [Slang] [PJC]
  • To fight shy. See under Fight, v. i. [1913 Webster]

Definition of 'Shy'

From: GCIDE
  • Shy \Shy\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Shied; p. pr. & vb. n. Shying.] [From Shy, a.] To start suddenly aside through fright or suspicion; -- said especially of horses. [1913 Webster]

Synonyms of 'shy'

From: Moby Thesaurus