Nonplussed vs Shy - What's the difference?
nonplussed | shy | Related terms |
Bewildered; unsure how to respond or act.
* 1724 , (Daniel Defoe), :
* Episode 16
* 2000 , Marcia Miller & Martin Lee, Vocabulary, Word of the Day
(proscribed, US, informal) Unfazed, unaffected, or unimpressed.
*
*
*
(nonplus)
Easily frightened; timid.
* Jonathan Swift
Reserved; disinclined to familiar approach.
* Arbuthnot
Cautious; wary; suspicious.
* Boyle
* Sir H. Wotton
Short, insufficient or less than.
Embarrassed.
To avoid due to timidness or caution.
To jump back in fear.
to throw sideways with a jerk; to fling
An act of throwing.
* Punch
* 2008 , (James Kelman), Kieron Smith, Boy , Penguin 2009, p. 55:
A place for throwing.
A sudden start aside, as by a horse.
In the Eton College wall game, a point scored by lifting the ball against the wall in the calx.
Nonplussed is a related term of shy.
As adjectives the difference between nonplussed and shy
is that nonplussed is bewildered; unsure how to respond or act while shy is easily frightened; timid.As verbs the difference between nonplussed and shy
is that nonplussed is (nonplus) while shy is to avoid due to timidness or caution.As a noun shy is
an act of throwing.nonplussed
English
Adjective
(en adjective)- Note, the honest Quaker was nonplussed , and greatly surprised at that question.
- For the nonce he was rather nonplussed but inasmuch as the duty plainly devolved upon him to take some measures on the subject he pondered suitable ways and means during which Stephen repeatedly yawned.
- "Dad was so nonplussed by the new VCR that he gave up and asked Mom to set it for him ".
Usage notes
In recent North American English nonplussed has acquired the alternative meaning of "unimpressed". In 1999, this was considered a neologism, ostensibly from "not plussed", although "plussed" by itself is not a recognized English word. The "unimpressed" meaning is not considered standard usage by at least one authoritative source.{{cite web , url = http://www.askoxford.com/concise_oed/nonplussed?view=uk , title = askOxford: nonplussed , accessdate = 2007-04-20 , language = English }}Synonyms
* (bewildered) perplexed, vexed, thwarted, frustrated, foiled, confoundedVerb
(head)References
shy
English
Adjective
(en-adj)- The horses of the army were no longer shy , but would come up to my very feet without starting.
- He is very shy with strangers.
- What makes you so shy , my good friend? There's nobody loves you better than I.
- I am very shy of using corrosive liquors in the preparation of medicines.
- Princes are, by wisdom of state, somewhat shy of their successors.
- 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.
See also
* bashful * reserved * timid * demure * coyUsage notes
* Often used in combination with a noun to produce an adjective or adjectival phrase. * Adjectives are usually applicable to animals (leash-shy'' "shy of leashes" or ''head shy "shy of contact around the head" (of horses)) or to children.Synonyms
* See alsoAntonyms
* brazen * bold * audaciousDerived terms
(terms derived using shy as suffix) * -shy * bird-shy * boy-shy * car-shy * cat-shy * camera-shy * cover-shy * girl-shy * gun-shy * hand-shy * man-shy * mouse-shy * noise-shy * people-shy * water-shy * woman-shy * work-shyVerb
- I shy away from investment opportunities I don't understand.
- The horse shied''' away from the rider, which startled him so much he '''shied away from the horse.
- to shy''' a stone; to '''shy a slipper
Noun
(shies)- (Thackeray)
- If Lord Brougham gets a stone in his hand, he must, it seems, have a shy at somebody.
- The game had started. A man was chasing the ball, it went out for a shy .
- coconut shy