1
as in bashfulness
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2
as in humility
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shyness
Manuel, for all his shyness, had been a regular on a recreational baseball team.
—
Jordan Salama, New Yorker, 30 Dec. 2025
Although it’s still considered rare, it’s often misdiagnosed as shyness — which can delay treatment.
—Erin Silvia, PEOPLE, 28 Oct. 2025
Chambers, meanwhile, is leaning into shyness on this album cycle by frequently covering her face in photos.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 24 Sep. 2025
This can range from occasional nerves and shyness to paralyzing fears of social situations and people.
—Sarah Scott, Parents, 23 Sep. 2025
The shyness could play a factor in one of the reasons why the spry pup is still under the care of the shelter.
—Tj MacIas, Miami Herald, 22 Sep. 2025
Rose's shyness made the initial transition to shelter life difficult, with the dog struggling to adjust to the hustle and bustle of her new life.
—Jack Beresford, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shyness
Noun
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The passage from the ordinary way of the world to the contemplative way of tea symbolizes humility.—
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Candidates from both parties use breathless prose, artificial deadlines and sometimes a dose of humility to add a sense of urgency to their appeals.—
Noun
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Vulnerability is currency on reality television, and after a season of exposing their own struggles and embarrassments, the other women are annoyed that Meredith wants to keep up appearances.—
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The current Giants are built to avoid embarrassment, not maximize upside — and Super Bowls require risk.—
Noun
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May the Spirit of God, who is truth and strength, and instils meekness and courage, sustain you.—
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Most Canadians want uncomplicated lives, a desire for calm that can be misinterpreted by louder people as meekness.—
Noun
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The Bulls took 18 fewer shots than the Celtics as a direct result of their timidity on the glass, grabbing only six offensive rebounds to Boston’s 20.—
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Enmired in the self-satisfactions and unnamed timidities of childhood, Galinda finds in herself neither canniness nor the need to cultivate it.—
Noun
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The secret to Buford’s longevity Buford expressed modesty about his service in World War II.—
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With the film’s relative modesty, Jarmusch is tuning up—while also retuning the world of cinema, its critics and its viewers, to his own distinctive note and preparing them for his higher harmonics to come.—
Noun
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Most of those seeds require some bit of cold weather exposure or other mitigating factor to overcome the inhibition and set the stage for a more sensible spring germination.—
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The key is to relax, let go of your inhibitions, and just have fun.—
Noun
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Practicing these three simple gestures (five different weekly contacts, three more genuine monthly exchanges, and one hour of daily sociability), awakens a part of ourselves that is too often put on the back burner or underestimated.—
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Besides the gleaming blue hull, the 60-footer has an open layout that encourages sociability while promoting privacy in areas like the sunbed at the stern or foredeck lounge.—
Noun
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But one suspected the real reason for Huang’s geniality lay elsewhere.—
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Riley, a Northern California native, who has always exuded a Zen-like geniality, was part of a generation of young American composers who had turned away from audience-alienating atonal music, which had been proselytized by their teachers in the science-minded postwar academy.—
Cite this Entry
“Shyness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shyness. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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