coy
pronunciation
How to pronounce coy in British English:
UK [kɔɪ]
How to pronounce coy in American English:
US [kɔɪ]
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- Adjective:
- affectedly modest or shy especially in a playful or provocative way
- showing marked and often playful or irritating evasiveness or reluctance to make a definite or committing statement
- modestly or warily rejecting approaches or overtures
Word Origin
- coy
- coy: [14] Essentially, coy is the same word as quiet, and ‘quiet’ is what it meant when it first came into English (it soon developed to ‘shyly reserved’, and the sense ‘quiet’ died out in the 17th century). Its ultimate source was Latin quiētus, but whereas in the case of quiet this passed directly through Old French, coy came via the more circuitous route of Vulgar Latin *quētus, which produced early Old French quei, and later coi, the source of the English word.=> quiet
- coy (adj.)
- early 14c., "quiet, modest, demure," from Old French coi, earlier quei "quiet, still, placid, gentle," ultimately from Latin quietus "resting, at rest" (see quiet (n.)). Meaning "shy" emerged late 14c. Meaning "unwilling to commit" is 1961. Related: Coyly; coyness.
Example
- 1. Women are coy and play hard to get .
- 2. The ecb has a clear strategy , but is too coy about the discussions behind its decisions .
- 3. But hp has been a little more coy and we could even see the hp touchpad arrive in the autumn .
- 4. Coy and euphemistic by today 's standards , victorian marriage manuals were the first widely available books to try to unlock the secrets of the body 's sex drive .
- 5. Jane knew that these girls were ahead of her in the fated trek toward adulthood , which she had half learned about in certain coy biology lessons .