timid

See also: tímid

English

Etymology

From Middle French timide, from Latin timidus (“full of fear, fearful, timid”), from timeō (“I fear”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈtɪmɪd/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

Adjective

timid (comparative timider, superlative timidest)

1. Lacking in courage or confidence.

   Synonyms: fearful, timorous, shy; see also Thesaurus:cautious, Thesaurus:shy

   Antonyms: daredevil, dauntless, bellicose, reckless, aggressive

   • 1963, Margery Allingham, chapter 19, in The China Governess‎^[1]:

     When Timothy and Julia hurried up the staircase to the bedroom floor, where a considerable commotion was taking place, Tim took Barry Leach with him. […]. The captive made no resistance and came not only quietly but in a series of eager little rushes like a timid dog on a choke chain.

   John's a very timid person. I'll doubt he'll be brave enough to face his brother.

Derived terms

• timidly
• timidness

Related terms

• intimidate
• intimidation
• timidity

Translations

lacking in courage or confidence

• Albanian: ndrojtur (sq)
• Arabic: جَبَان (ar) (jabān)
• Armenian: please add this translation if you can
• Basque: please add this translation if you can
• Belarusian: бая́зны (bajázny), баязлі́вы (bajazlívy), палахлі́вы (palaxlívy), нясме́лы (njasmjély)
• Bulgarian: плах (bg) (plah), боязли́в (bg) (bojazlív), плашли́в (bg) (plašlív)
• Burmese: ရှက် (my) (hrak)
• Catalan: tímid (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 膽小／胆小 (zh) (dǎnxiǎo), 胆小 (zh) (dǎnxiǎo), 膽怯／胆怯 (zh) (dǎnqiè), 胆怯 (zh) (dǎnqiè), 羞怯 (zh) (xiūqiè), 怯懦 (zh) (qiènuò)

• Czech: bojácný m, nesmělý m, bázlivý (cs), plachý (cs) (shy), nesmělý
• Danish: frygtsom
• Dutch: schuchter (nl), bedeesd (nl), schroomvallig (nl), timide (nl)
• Esperanto: timema
• Estonian: pelglik, kartlik, arg (et)
• Finnish: säikky (fi), pelokas (fi), ujo (fi), arka (fi)
• French: timide (fr), craintif (fr)
• Galician: tímido
• Georgian: please add this translation if you can
• German: furchtsam (de), zaghaft (de), zögerlich (de), schüchtern (de), befangen (de), ängstlich (de), kopfscheu (de), kleinmütig (de), verhuscht (de), verzagt (de), zag (de), timide (de), timid (de), scheu (de)
• Greek: αθάρρευτος (el) (athárreftos)
• Hungarian: félénk (hu)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Ido: timida (io)
• Italian: timido (it), pavido (it), impaurito (it)
• Japanese: 憶病 (おくびょう, okubyō)
• Khmer: ត្រុកៗ (trok-trok), អៀន (km) (ien), ទុយមុយ (km) (tuy muy), ប្រុនៗ (pron-pron), មុយៗ (muy-muy)
• Korean: 소심(小心)하다 (ko) (sosimhada)
• Ladino: arrezistado, timido
• Latin: meticulosus, timidus, pavidus
• Latvian: bikls (lv), kautrīgs
• Louisiana Creole French: timid
• Macedonian: плашлив (plašliv)
• Manx: faitagh
• Maori: tikumu, kōpī, kōpīpī, kōpipiri, whakakumu
• Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
• Occitan: timid (oc)
• Persian: ترسو (fa)
• Plautdietsch: bleed (nds), feij
• Polish: bojaźliwy (pl), płochliwy (pl), nieśmiały (pl)
• Portuguese: tímido (pt)
• Romanian: timid (ro) m
• Russian: ро́бкий (ru) (róbkij), засте́нчивый (ru) (zasténčivyj), боязли́вый (ru) (bojazlívyj), несме́лый (ru) (nesmélyj), пугли́вый (ru) (puglívyj)
• Scottish Gaelic: diùid, gealtach, sgàthach
• Serbo-Croatian: snebivljiv (sh)
• Slovak: bojazlivý, nesmelý
• Spanish: tímido (es)
• Swedish: blyg (sv), timid (sv)
• Thai: please add this translation if you can
• Turkish: ürkek (tr)
• Ukrainian: боязки́й (uk) (bojazkýj), несміли́вий (nesmilývyj), несмі́ливий (nesmílyvyj), несмі́лий (nesmílyj), полохли́вий (poloxlývyj)
• Vietnamese: rụt rè (vi)

Further reading

• “timid”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “timid”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• dimit

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Ibaloi

Noun

timid

1. (anatomy) chin

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Ilocano

Etymology

From Proto-Malayo-Polynesian *timid, compare Tetum timir.

Noun

timid

1. (anatomy) chin

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Louisiana Creole French

Etymology

From French timide (“shy, timid”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ti.mid/

Adjective

timid

1. shy, timid.

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Romanian

Etymology

Borrowed from French timide and Latin timidus.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /tiˈmid/

Adjective

timid m or n (feminine singular timidă, masculine plural timizi, feminine and neuter plural timide)

1. timid, shy

Declension

Declension of timid

		singular			plural
		masculine	neuter	feminine	masculine	neuter	feminine
nominative/ accusative	indefinite	timid		timidă	timizi	timide
	definite	timidul		timida	timizii	timidele
genitive/ dative	indefinite	timid		timide	timizi	timide
	definite	timidului		timidei	timizilor	timidilor

Related terms

• timiditate