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😳 Nervous with people ➖ Less than needed 🏃‍♂️ To move back 🎯 A quick throw 🥎 To throw quickly
shy

shy

63 6.4
Slightly less than a particular number
  • adjective
  • /ʃaɪ/
translation icon : por debajo de
  • HE'S TWO DAYS SHY OF FIVE MONTHS NOW.
  • just shy of
  • two votes shy of
  • shy of a majority

You were just one place shy of of getting that.

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Examples

  • The man at the door was enormous, six feet eight inches tall, just shy of three hundred pounds.

    Fiction book (1997)

  • The full committee is one vote shy of support because of disagreement about mandating employer contributions.

    Academic text (1994)

  • You were just one place shy of of getting that.

    Rich Roll

  • We're really shy on help tonight.

    Remote Viewing (2018)

  • The case stopped just shy of the Supreme Court.

    Academic text (2016)

  • So I have been dating Brian just shy of four years now.

  • I think you were a few credits shy.

    The Vow (2012)

  • Sydney, at 20 percent, we are 34 votes shy in the House.

    Fiction book (1995)

  • Macie was adopted 10 days shy of her 12th birthday.

    Moments in Spacetime (2020)

  • The company reported earnings just shy of $1 million this quarter.

Antonyms

exceeding
1 5.6

Very great in amount or degree

surpassing
5.8

Far better than what is usual or expected

Idioms

few cards shy of a full deck
  • Slur
9.9

Not thinking clearly or not very intelligent

once bitten, twice shy
  • Informal
7.9

Careful about doing something again because of a bad past experience

Compounds

shy person
4 2.5

A person who feels nervous around others and avoids social situations

shy bladder
  • Specialized
2 8.3

Difficulty peeing when other people are nearby, especially in public bathrooms

work-shy
  • UK
8.5

Not willing to do a job or make an effort

Surface Forms

shy positive

Etymology

Shy used with numbers comes from the idea of being a little away from a mark, so imagine being just short of a line. That's why saying you are 'a few dollars shy' means you are a little less than the amount you need.