#881. Modesty. -- N. modesty; humility &c. 879; diffidence, timidity; retiring disposition; unobtrusiveness; bashfulness &c. adj.; mauvaise honte[Fr]; blush, blushing; verecundity|; self-knowledge.
reserve, constraint; demureness &c. adj.; " blushing honors " [Henry VIII].
V. be modest &c. adj.; retire, reserve oneself; give way to; draw in one's horns &c. 879; hide one's face.
keep private, keep in the background, keep one's distance; pursue the noiseless tenor of one's way, " do good by stealth and blush to find it fame " [Pope], hide one's light under a bushel, cast a sheep's eye.
Adj. modest, diffident; humble &c. 879; timid, timorous, bashful; shy, nervous, skittish, coy, sheepish, shamefaced, blushing, overmodest.
unpretending[obs], unpretentious; unobtrusive, unassuming, unostentatious, unboastful[obs], unaspiring; poor in spirit.
out of countenance &c. (humbled) 879. reserved, constrained, demure.
Adv. humbly &c. adj.; quietly, privately; without ceremony, without beat of drum; sans faon.
Phr. " not stepping o'er the bounds of modesty " [Romeo and Juliet]; " thy modesty's a candle to thy merit " [Fielding].