timidtim‧id /ˈtɪmɪd/ adjective 
Word Origin
I was a timid child. a policy that is both timid and inadequate► see thesaurus at shy—timidly adverb—timidity /təˈmɪdəti/ noun [uncountable]RegisterIn everyday English, people usually say that someone is shy rather than timid.
Word OriginWORD ORIGINtimid
ExamplesOrigin:
1500-1600 Latin timidus, from timere; ➔ TIMOROUSEXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- "May I come in?" said a timid little voice.
- a timid child
- Decker knew that the senior officer was wrong, but was too timid to tell him.
- I was always timid about taking action in a crisis, but not Doris.
- Ralph's wife was a small, timid woman who hardly ever spoke.
- The nation's newspapers are usually timid in criticizing the military.
- They think I'm just a timid woman, but I'll show them they're wrong.
- Bruck is suitably cautious, but not at all timid.
- But soon nervous, timid seals tended to live longer than trusting ones, so gradually seals grew more and more wary.
- But then, Shyamalan is not an individual who could ever be described as timid.
- Ellie and I talked in the kitchen, whispering, both a bit timid.
- I should have been as timid as the girl herself, if she had looked at me!
- It was a bit like sitting very quietly in a forest and waiting for a rare and timid wild animal to come out.
- Many riders we hear about seem unjustifiably timid about taking themselves and their horses off across the countryside.
- On the phone, though, her client sounded timid, afraid, lost.
THESAURUS► bashful
Collocations shy and not willing to say very much
► self-conscious worried and embarrassed about what you look like or what other people think of you
► timid not brave or confident
► reserved not liking to express your emotions or talk about your problems
► introverted thinking a lot about your own interests, problems etc, and not liking to be with other people
► withdrawn quiet and not wanting to talk to other people, especially because you are unhappy
► antisocial not liking to meet people and talk to them
► retiring formal not wanting to be with other people
Longman Language Activatorsomeone who easily gets frightened► scare easily informal to easily get frightened: · Being a police officer isn't a job for someone who scares easily.· I'll go down and see what that noise was. I don't scare easily you know.
► timid easily frightened and unwilling to do anything that might be unpleasant or dangerous: · Decker knew that the senior officer was wrong, but was too timid to tell him.· They think I'm just a timid woman, but I'll show them they're wrong.timid about doing something: · I was always timid about taking action in a crisis, but not Doris.
► nervous a nervous person is always worried or frightened about something that may happen, so that they cannot relax: · You know what makes me nervous? When people drive really close behind you.· The stage is huge, you know, and I walked out there, and I was real nervous.nervous about: · I was so nervous about my exams that I couldn't sleep.nervous of: · Jill's always been a little nervous of dogs.of a nervous disposition (=with a nervous character) formal: · People of a nervous disposition may be upset by some of the scenes in the following programme.
not confident about talking to people► shy not confident about talking to people, especially people you do not know: · David was always rather quiet and shy at school.· Carrie looked up at him and gave him a shy smile.painfully shy (=extremely shy): · He was painfully shy in public, but completely different at home with his family.too shy to do something: · I was too shy to ask her out on a date.go all shy spoken (=suddenly become very shy): · Look, she's gone all shy - stop teasing her.shy with girls/boys/adults etc (=shy when you are talking to girls, boys etc): · Because little Danny spent all his time with his mother, he was rather shy with men.
► timid frightened to talk to people or to give your opinion, because you have very little confidence: · Ralph's wife was a small, timid woman who hardly ever spoke.· "May I come in?" said a timid little voice.
► bashful someone who is bashful is unwilling to give their opinions or do something that they would enjoy, especially because they are embarrassed or afraid that they will look stupid: · Don't be bashful about telling your family how you feel.· Kirsty gave Willy a bashful grin.
► coy someone who is coy deliberately behaves in a shy way because they think it is attractive: · Teresa blushed when she saw me and turned very coy.· Her mother encouraged her to use her feminine charm, to be coy and alluring.
► diffident formal someone who is diffident does not like talking about their achievements or is not confident of their abilities: · Shaun became noticeably diffident when the conversation turned to the subject of his promotion.diffident about: · Joe was humble and diffident about his own success.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADVERB► too
not having courage or confidence SYN shy OPP confident: · Maybe it is they who are being too timid in their ideas and proposals.· I offer a plan: too timid, too reserved.· Humble clerks who have gone a bust on clothes for marriageable daughters are outraged but too timid to protest.· They failed not because they were too timid but because they overreached.· Even this may be too timid.· When she found it she was too timid to go to the front door so she peeped in the window.· I always said that Halliwell was too timid by half.
I was a timid child. a policy that is both timid and inadequate► see thesaurus at shy—timidly adverb—timidity /təˈmɪdəti/ noun [uncountable]RegisterIn everyday English, people usually say that someone is shy rather than timid.