1
: socially shy or timid : diffident, self-conscious
He was bashful as a child.
2
: resulting from or typical of a bashful nature
a bashful smile
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The Roots of Bashful
The adjective suffix -ful has a number of different senses, most of which have very little to do with "full of." In the case of bashful, -ful means "having the qualities of." This sense of -ful was combined with an obsolete verb bash meaning "to be abashed” (that is, dismayed or embarrassed) to form bashful, which literally means “having the qualities of being abashed.” This combination of a verb with -ful is also seen in mournful, which literally means “having the qualities of mourning.”
Cite this Entry
“Bashful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bashful. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.
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