- Home
- Idioms
- fight shy of
fight shy of
fight shy of something/doing something
to try to avoid something He fought shy of entering his poems in the competition, although everyone said he should. Ellen fights shy of parties - she hates crowds.
fight shy of
Avoid meeting or confronting someone, as in "I have ... had to fight shy of invitations that would exhaust time and spirits" (Washington Irving, Life and Letters, 1821). This usage may allude to a military reluctance to meet or engage with the enemy. [Late 1700s]
fight shy of
To avoid meeting or confronting.