Word.ws English Dictionary

shrinking violet

Syllables: shrink·ing vio·letUK/ˈʃɹɪŋkɪŋ ˈvaɪələt/US/ˈʃɹɪŋkɪŋ ˈvaɪələt/

shrinking violet noun: a very shy or timid person, who avoids contact with others if possible.

Noun

shrinking violet (plural shrinking violets)

  1. (idiomatic) A very shy or timid person, who avoids contact with others if possible.
    • June, no shrinking violet she, crossed the room and introduced herself to the newcomers.
    • '"Shy", you said, sir! And I think you saw Moya less than six months ago? Well, the shrinking violet has been "had" twice since then for brawling, and if her mother hadn't contrived influenza in the very nick of time I understand that the timid fawn had arranged to chain herself to the minute hand...1927, Ernest Bramah [pseudonym; Ernest Brammah Smith], Max Carrados Mysteries
    Synonyms:
    shy person

shrinking violet meaning in Tamil

shrinking violet in Tamil

கூச்சம், அச்ச உணர்வு அதிகமுள்ள நபர்

Synonyms of shrinking violet

  • shy person

Forms of shrinking violet

pluralshrinking violets

Origin of shrinking violet

Possibly from the inconspicuous nature of the violet (genus Viola) flower and plant. The term appears to have been first used in the literal sense in the early 19th century.

Questions about shrinking violet

What does shrinking violet mean?
Shrinking violet means a very shy or timid person, who avoids contact with others if possible.
What is shrinking violet in Tamil?
Shrinking violet in Tamil is கூச்சம், அச்ச உணர்வு அதிகமுள்ள நபர். See Shrinking violet meaning in Tamil.
What part of speech is shrinking violet?
Shrinking violet is a noun.
How do you pronounce shrinking violet?
Shrinking violet is pronounced /ˈʃɹɪŋkɪŋ ˈvaɪələt/ (UK).
What is the plural of shrinking violet?
The plural of shrinking violet is shrinking violets.

Words near shrinking violet in the dictionary

  1. shrinking back
  2. shrinking down
  3. shrinking frog
  4. shrinking frogs
  5. shrinking up
  6. shrinking violet
  7. shrinking violets
  8. shrinkingly
  9. shrinkings
  10. shrinkproof
  11. shrinkproofness

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: shrinking violet (page history and authors); shrinking violet (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: en-au-shrinking violet.ogg.

Cite this entry: “shrinking violet.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/shrinking_violet. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.