shy

/ʃaɪ/

//ʃaɪ// adj

The verdict

“shy” is uncommon Portuguese (frequency #50,223 among 1,185 “S” headwords), classed as an adjective. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#50,223
frequency rank, Portuguese
1,185
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - tímido, envergonhado

Corpus desk

Index PT-shy · shy · Portuguese

shy · rank #50,223 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #50,223
  • LEN-MID 3 letters
  • VOW-1 1 vowel
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-MID 1,185
  • PHOTO-FINISH situation

Nearest frequency peer: situation (+4 rank slots)

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Ranks da cauda longa perto de “shy”

Faixa escassa: as barras invertem o rank para o raro ler-se mais curto

corpus weight

What this shows Vista da cauda longa: onde “shy” se situa face a ranks portugueses igualmente raros.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for shy
PropertyValue
Headwordshy
LanguagePortuguese
Part of speechAdjective
IPA/ʃaɪ/
Letters3
Frequency rank#50,223
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Cauda longa: rank de “shy” em português

Da esquerda para a direita: o pouco que carrega a fala diária, depois a cauda longa quase invisível.shycai nesta cauda de raridade:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Os ticks avançam em logaritmo; cada um é da ordem de dez vezes mais raro. Vizinhos raros da mesma faixa: “situation” (#50,227), “smooth” (#50,230), “sano” (#50,213). Entre 1,185 lemas com “S”, “shy” fica em #50,223. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

shy is uncommon Portuguese at frequency #50,223 among 1,185 “S” headwords, classed as anadjective, transcribed /ʃaɪ/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "tímido, envergonhado".

No misspelling variants are generated for shy in our index, typically a sign the spelling maps closely to how the word sounds. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, suggesting its spelling stands apart enough that readers rarely confuse it with something else.

This headword's origin isn't recorded in our source data, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct Portuguese form is shy, spelled S-H-Y.

Definition

  1. 1
    tímido, envergonhado

Recorded use

Wiktionary example

These source excerpts show how shy appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. He was too shy to invite you

Synonyms

introvertedtimid

Antonyms

extrovertedoutgoing

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 Portuguese corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "shy"?
"shy" is spelled S-H-Y. The IPA pronunciation is /ʃaɪ/.
What does "shy" mean?
As an adjective, "shy" means: tímido, envergonhado
How do you pronounce "shy"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "shy" is /ʃaɪ/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "shy" come from?
"shy" is a Portuguese word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar Portuguese words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "shy", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked Portuguese headwords with 3 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list