Modest vs. Shy

Modestadjective

Not bragging or boasting about oneself or one's achievements; unpretentious, humble.

Shyadjective

Easily frightened; timid.

Modestadjective

Small, moderate in size.

‘He earns a modest amount of money.’; ‘Her latest novel was a modest success.’;

Shyadjective

Reserved; disinclined to familiar approach.

‘He is very shy with strangers.’;

Modestadjective

Pure and delicate from a sense of propriety.

‘modest thoughts or language’;

Shyadjective

Cautious; wary; suspicious.

Modestadjective

(especially of behaviour or clothing) Intending to avoid the encouraging of sexual attraction in others.

Shyadjective

(informal) Short, insufficient or less than.

‘By our count your shipment came up two shy of the bill of lading amount.’; ‘It is just shy of a mile from here to their house.’;

Modestadjective

Restraining within due limits of propriety; not forward, bold, boastful, or presumptious; rather retiring than pushing one's self forward; not obstructive; as, a modest youth; a modest man.

Shyadjective

Embarrassed. en

Modestadjective

Observing the proprieties of the sex; not unwomanly in act or bearing; free from undue familiarity, indecency, or lewdness; decent in speech and demeanor; - said of a woman.

‘Mrs. Ford, the honest woman, the modest wife.’; ‘The blushing beauties of a modest maid.’;

Shyverb

(intransitive) To avoid due to timidness or caution.

‘I shy away from investment opportunities I don't understand.’;

Modestadjective

Evincing modestly in the actor, author, or speaker; not showing presumption; not excessive or extreme; moderate; as, a modest request; modest joy.

Shyverb

(intransitive) To jump back in fear.

‘The horse shied away from the rider, which startled him so much he shied away from the horse.’;

Modestadjective

marked by simplicity; having a humble opinion of yourself;

‘a modest apartment’; ‘too modest to wear his medals’;

Shyverb

(transitive) to throw sideways with a jerk; to fling

‘to shy a stone; to shy a slipper’;

Modestadjective

not large but sufficient in size or amount;

‘a modest salary’; ‘modest inflation’; ‘helped in my own small way’;

Shynoun

An act of throwing.

Modestadjective

free from pomp or affectation;

‘comfortable but modest cottages’; ‘a simple rectangular brick building’; ‘a simple man with simple tastes’;

Shynoun

A place for throwing.

‘coconut shy’;

Modestadjective

not offensive to sexual mores in conduct or appearance

Shynoun

A sudden start aside, as by a horse.

Modestadjective

low or inferior in station or quality;

‘a humble cottage’; ‘a lowly parish priest’; ‘a modest man of the people’; ‘small beginnings’;

Shynoun

In the Eton College wall game, a point scored by lifting the ball against the wall in the calx.

Modestadjective

humble in spirit or manner; suggesting retiring mildness or even cowed submissiveness;

‘meek and self-effacing’;

Shyadjective

Easily frightened; timid; as, a shy bird.

‘The horses of the army . . . were no longer shy, but would come up to my very feet without starting.’;

Modestadjective

limited in size or scope;

‘a small business’; ‘a newspaper with a modest circulation’; ‘small-scale plans’; ‘a pocket-size country’;

Shyadjective

Reserved; coy; disinclined to familiar approach.

‘What makes you so shy, my good friend? There's nobody loves you better than I.’; ‘The embarrassed look of shy distressAnd maidenly shamefacedness.’;

Modestadjective

free from ostentation or pretension;

‘the restrained elegance of the room’;

Shyadjective

Cautious; wary; suspicious.

‘I am very shy of using corrosive liquors in the preparation of medicines.’; ‘Princes are, by wisdom of state, somewhat shy of thier successors.’;

Modestadjective

unassuming in the estimation of one's abilities or achievements

‘he was a very modest man, refusing to take any credit for the enterprise’;

Shyadjective

Inadequately supplied; short; lacking; as, the team is shy two players.

Modestadjective

(of an amount, rate, or level) relatively moderate, limited, or small

‘drink modest amounts of alcohol’; ‘employment growth was relatively modest’;

Shyadjective

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.

Modestadjective

not large, elaborate, or expensive

‘a modest flat in Fulham’; ‘it was a nice wedding, necessarily modest’;

Shyverb

To start suddenly aside through fright or suspicion; - said especially of horses.

Modestadjective

(of a woman) dressing or behaving so as to avoid impropriety or indecency, especially to avoid attracting sexual attention

‘the modest women wear long-sleeved dresses and all but cover their faces’;

Shyverb

To throw sidewise with a jerk; to fling; as, to shy a stone; to shy a slipper.

Modestadjective

(of clothing) not revealing or emphasizing a person's figure

‘modest dress means that hemlines must be below the knee’;

Shynoun

A sudden start aside, as by a horse.

Modest

Modest may refer to:

Shynoun

A side throw; a throw; a fling.

‘If Lord Brougham gets a stone in his hand, he must, it seems, have a shy at somebody.’;

Shynoun

a quick throw;

‘he gave the ball a shy to the first baseman’;

Shyverb

start suddenly, as from fight

Shyverb

throw quickly

Shyadjective

lacking self-confidence;

‘stood in the doorway diffident and abashed’; ‘problems that call for bold not timid responses’; ‘a very unsure young man’;

Shyadjective

easily startled or frightened

Shyadjective

short;

‘eleven is one shy of a dozen’;

Shyadjective

wary and distrustful; disposed to avoid persons or things;

‘shy of strangers’;

Shyadjective

nervous or timid in the company of other people

‘I was pretty shy at school’; ‘a shy smile’;

Shyadjective

slow or reluctant to do (something)

‘the wealthy have become less shy of displaying their privilege’;

Shyadjective

having a dislike of or aversion to a specified thing

‘he was very car shy when he came here’;

Shyadjective

(of a wild mammal or bird) reluctant to remain in sight of humans

‘otters are very shy animals’;

Shyadjective

less than; short of

‘the shares are 29p shy of their flotation price’;

Shyadjective

before

‘he left school just shy of his fourteenth birthday’;

Shyadjective

(of a plant) not bearing flowers or fruit well or prolifically.

Shyverb

(especially of a horse) start suddenly aside in fright at an object, noise, or movement

‘their horses shied at the unfamiliar sight’;

Shyverb

avoid doing or becoming involved in (something) due to nervousness or a lack of confidence

‘don't shy away from saying what you think’;

Shyverb

fling or throw (something) at a target

‘he tore the spectacles off and shied them at her’;

Shynoun

a sudden startled movement, especially of a frightened horse.

Shynoun

an act of flinging or throwing something at a target.