There are 2 main translations of shy in Spanish

: shy¹ shy²

shy¹

tímido, adj.
Spanish
Latin American Spanish

Pronunciation /ʃʌɪ//ʃaɪ/

adjective

1
- 1.1
  (person) tímido
  (person) vergonzoso
  (smile) tímido
  (animal) huraño
  (animal) asustadizo
  I felt very shy in front of all those people — me sentía cohibido delante de toda esa gente
  don't be shy — que no te dé vergüenza
  he's very shy with women — es muy tímido con las mujeres
  he's shy about undressing — le da vergüenza desnudarse
  don't be shy about asking me for money — no debe darte vergüenza pedirme dinero
  And he grinned that shy little grin that I was learning to love.
  The shy birds were reluctant to cache when observed and often made fake deposits.
  Who would have known behind that shy smile was a major flirt.
  The Department of Conservation has been on the hunt for our national icon in the Western Bay since November - but so far the shy birds have remained out of reach.
  He rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, giving a shy smile.
  Cyrio looked up at that, furrowed his brow, then smiled that shy smile of his that made his eyes twinkle.
  We need to find ways of ensuring that shy people can live in this coming transparent society without becoming second-class citizens.
  He seemed very shy and nervous, and getting words out of his mouth was like pulling teeth.
  Today, this area of Broadland still attracts these shy birds.
  His smile is shy, almost gentle, and his eyes dart nervously around him.
  Thanks to that shy reader who furnished me with the above information.
  Lucy is a shy cat and I haven't succeeded yet in taking a picture of her.
  Do not shy away if the bird hisses at you and fluffs up its feathers, it is only bluffing.
  My dad (who I think is very shy himself deep down) gave me a talk once about how social interaction was a big game that you just needed to learn how to play.
  Tapirs are shy, reclusive rainforest animals that live in nearly any wooded or grassy habitat with a permanent supply of water.
  But there, a team of dedicated sheepdogs is helping individuals ranging from bullied children to shy businessmen become more assertive.
  I never dreamed I would get so close to one of these shy animals.
  I was so shy it was unbelievable and it never occurred to me that I could get into this business.
  This rather shy animal is not easily sighted in the open and you are more likely to see or hear them in thick woodlands and forested parks.
  They are not shy birds and may allow close views as they busily feed.
  But the quest for shy animals in the wild more often than not ends up being about all the other things you discover along the way.
  I had long ago learned that when someone is moving about, in secluded wooded areas like this, the birds are more shy.
  One hundred years ago the shy birds were probably widespread across the North of England, but numbers declined as they suffered due to changes in agricultural practice.
  Normally shy, nocturnal animals, the great crested newts have reluctantly stepped into the limelight to highlight their cause.
  At first the animals were quite shy, but they have settled in well.
  The shy monkey species was already known to local tribespeople called the Wanyakyusa.
  Noise must be kept to a minimum, as tigers are shy.
  She was absolutely charming, rather maternal and incredibly shy herself.
  I've gone from being shy and timid, to being quietly confident and assured.
  The good news is that shy people eventually achieve everything that everyone else does - they date, marry, have children.
  A third explanation for our finding is that shy children may be more sensitive to the symptoms of illness or more likely to reflect on their internal states.
  There were more days on which shy children complained of unwellness and parents observed symptoms of unwellness than for nonshy children.
  They are a shy bird by nature and are wary of people.
  Cole believes it's the stress that shy people constantly experience which leaves them more vulnerable to disease.
  It was a nice day and with no guests about, the oddly shy pony boy should have been out soaking up the sun.
  Build a brush pile near your feeder to make sparrows, towhees, and other shy birds feel more at home, but be sure it won't harbor roaming cats.
  Interviewees reported that shy students were more vulnerable to teasing.
  I've found that shy guys tend to go for the real outgoing girls because they're easiest to spot.
  Jayalalitha, a once shy, timid, tiny introvert, was so outstanding in her studies that her portrait hangs in her school as a star alumnus with academic excellence as her only passion.
  The Opeh was an extremely shy bird, and very rarely came within sight of a human.
- 1.2(wary, cautious)
  to be shy of -ing
  don't be shy of telling her what you think — no tengas miedo de decirle lo que piensas
  I'd be shy of getting involved in that — yo me cuidaría de meterme en eso
  I wanted to take things slow, and was shy about being intimate.
  She has never been shy of expressing her feminist opinions.
2US informal
(lacking)
to be shy of sth
- we were shy of funds — andábamos cortos de fondos
- he was four years shy of being eligible to retire — le faltaban cuatro años para poder jubilarse
- she came up shy (of victory) by only a few votes — no ganó por unos pocos votos

intransitive verb

1
respingar
asustarse
her horse shied when the gun went off/at the noise — el caballo respingó al dispararse la pistola/al oír el ruido
- They all shied aside as the headlamps swept over them and the truck skidded to a halt.
- His horse saw them, though, and tugged anxiously at the reins, shying away.
- Dusty eased onto the bronco, who shied as soon as he felt weight on him.
- Patton shows a marked insight into training horse and rider as he cautions against harsh movements with the bridle hand that would cause a horse to shy.
- The stallion snorted in the way that only horses could and began to shy at something on the side of the trail.
- Kathryn jumped and the gelding spooked as well, shying a few paces to the left and dragging Kathryn with him.
- They flinched and shied away from the sudden, loud noise, and I took that moment to bolt.
- Charcoal stopped shying her feet and stood still, enjoying Laurel's attention.
- At that moment, a flash of green and brown shot between them, and the black stallion shied, backing away, neighing.
- Justine watched her father's steady hand movements towards the filly's head as she shied away.
- The incident happened when the horse was being led along the towpath on Sunday by her owner when she shied at a cycle barrier and bolted backwards.
- He said she had fallen because ‘the camel shied at the passing traffic and jumped.’
- His horse shied a little as a score of men heavily armed marched loudly past, metal armour clanking.
- He shied a bit from me, but Cae slipped a carrot into my hand.
- Hoss jumped, and the horse shied, the twin jolts coming together in the agony of his jawbone.
- His horse shied to the right, making room on the path for the newcomer.
- But the white horse shied away from her, his wild eyes showing their whites, ears laid back in fear.
- His horse's nuzzled the hip of Irish's horse, causing Eye's horse to shy.
- She sat immobile for a moment before coming back to the present with a quick shake of her head, immediately cringing and shying away from him.
- Morgan almost stooped in mid-stride causing the horse to shy away.