What's the difference between abash and shy?

Abash


Definition:

  • (v. t.) To destroy the self-possession of; to confuse or confound, as by exciting suddenly a consciousness of guilt, mistake, or inferiority; to put to shame; to disconcert; to discomfit.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) Later on, it was my mum who would bang on about people being lesbians and I would be pleased but still rather abashed to hear the words.
  • (2) Do not feel abashed, faithful correspondent, for it is not your fault.
  • (3) Hytner seems genuinely abashed at the suggestion he's made it look easy.
  • (4) "I saw Katie Price here on TV," she says, a touch abashed.

Shy


Definition:

  • (superl.) Easily frightened; timid; as, a shy bird.
  • (superl.) Reserved; coy; disinclined to familiar approach.
  • (superl.) Cautious; wary; suspicious.
  • (a.) To start suddenly aside through fright or suspicion; -- said especially of horses.
  • (v. t.) To throw sidewise with a jerk; to fling; as, to shy a stone; to shy a slipper.
  • (n.) A sudden start aside, as by a horse.
  • (n.) A side throw; a throw; a fling.

Example Sentences:

  • (1) Philip Shaw, chief economist at broker Investec, expects CPI to hit 5.1%, just shy of the 5.2% reached in September 2008, as the utility hikes alone add 0.4% to inflation.
  • (2) The Vc was dramatically increased in the qk, slightly decreased in the shi, and close to control in the mld.
  • (3) Twellman has steadily grown in confidence as he settles into his role, though whether as a player or as an advocate he was never shy about voicing his opinions.
  • (4) It’s going to affect everybody.” The six songs from Rebel Heart released thus far do not shy away from controversy: one, Illuminati, mocks the various conspiracy theories on the internet that implicate a variety of entertainers – including Jay-Z and Lady Gaga – in membership of a shadowy ruling elite.
  • (5) But today, Americans increasingly no longer shy away from saying they oppose mosques on the grounds that Muslims are a threat or different.
  • (6) In general, we've shied away from offering opinions on the rest of the industry – I don't think it's appropriate.
  • (7) Never camera-shy, he also leaves his legacy on celluloid too.
  • (8) On the other hand, if past experience is anything to go by, this government isn’t shy of a U-turn ; and, if Whittingdale and his advisers aren’t completely deaf, they may at least detect that he would do well to keep the relish out of his voice as he announces the steps he intends to take.
  • (9) It’s as if they were a team away from the team, and they’re not shy of plugging into it.
  • (10) And just a few games shy of making history, the Warriors blew a 17-point lead and fell to the Minnesota Timberwolves – another team that didn’t even come close to making the playoffs – after forcing the game into overtime.
  • (11) She was a little shy as a child, a big reader who loved movies as much as books and thought from an early age that she would be a writer.
  • (12) By contrast, in Shy-Drager cases there was a highly significant reduction in intermediolateral column cells compared with the normal cords.
  • (13) A ceremony will take place at which Jolie will receive the child, who is said to be healthy, likeable, a bit shy and keen on football.
  • (14) A young, shy jihadi named Fouad took us into an abandoned building, where a meal was spread out on the floor.
  • (15) Sterling fell 1.3% against the dollar to $1.6495, just shy of a session low $1.6475.
  • (16) Estimates of panda numbers in the wild vary enormously due to the difficulty of collecting data about the notoriously shy animal, which lives in dense, high-altitude vegetation: the last survey required more than 35,000 volunteers.
  • (17) The move signals a change for Democrats , who have traditionally shied away from gun control in a state with a pioneer tradition of gun ownership.
  • (18) What's more, his genial stiffness and shy self-awareness give him a kind of awkward dignity compared to the preening smugness of Cruz.
  • (19) Pausing while much of the audience booed the protester, Obama responded: "We're not going to shy away from things that are uncomfortable."
  • (20) Another shy Tory, who teaches at a secondary school in north Kent, says she voted Ukip in the European elections.