*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of shyly

Etymology tree Middle English shy English shy Middle English -ly English -ly English shyly From shy + -ly.

1 source sectionBrief source recordWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 1 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Unnumbered source etymology

Original entry ↗
adv

In a shy manner.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Etymology tree Middle English shy English shy Middle English -ly English -ly English shyly From shy + -ly.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

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  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "shy",
        "4": "-ly<id:adverbial>",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nMiddle English shy\nEnglish shy\nMiddle English -ly\nEnglish -ly\nEnglish shyly\n[Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"shy\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }, { \"id\" : \"adverbial\", \"children\" : [ { \"terms\" : [ { \"id\" : \"adverbial\", \"children\" : [ ], \"status\" : \"missing\", \"lang_name\" : \"Middle English\", \"term\" : \"-ly\", \"lang\" : \"enm\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"Inherited from\", \"keyword\" : \"inherited\" } ], \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"-ly\", \"lang\" : \"en\" } ], \"keyword_label\" : \"From\", \"is_group\" : true, \"keyword\" : \"affix\" } ], \"lang_name\" : \"English\", \"term\" : \"shyly\", \"status\" : \"ok\", \"lang\" : \"en\" }\" data-lang=\"en\" data-title=\"shyly\">\nFrom shy + -ly."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "shy",
        "4": "-ly<id:adverbial>",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nMiddle English shy\nEnglish shy\nProto-Indo-European *leyg-der.\nProto-Germanic *līkąder.\nProto-Germanic *-līkaz\nProto-Germanic *-ê\nProto-Germanic *-līkê\nProto-West Germanic *-līkē\nOld English -līċe\nMiddle English -ly\nEnglish -ly\nEnglish shyly\nFrom shy + -ly."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "shy",
      "shy#Middle_English:_timid"
    ],
    [
      "shy",
      "shy#English"
    ],
    [
      "-ly",
      "-ly#Middle_English:_adverbial"
    ],
    [
      "-ly",
      "-ly#English:_adverbial"
    ],
    [
      "shy",
      "shy#English"
    ],
    [
      "-ly",
      "-ly#English:_adverbial"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "adv",
      "glosses": [
        "In a shy manner."
      ],
      "tags": [],
      "recordId": "dc7258b544f83f9739b42b73f4c7eacc5bc89aedcc4d58701f085a978ece2520",
      "rawRecordSha256": "1d1b37f4aef4b459f6c8c1a95868ddc1e8f467ede56a62ddbb51742046b4a506",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 770876
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for shyly →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-c2h5bHk