Like a shrinking violet

Latest answer — July 06, 2026

59 Down

Think of someone who prefers blending into the background rather than being the center of attention. 🌸

Scroll down for rest of crossword answers

NYT Crossword

This clue's Monday, July 06, 2026 appearance

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Across

  1. 1Long, detailed tales
  2. 6Binds together
  3. 10Russia's Peter the Great, e.g.
  4. 14Hertz competitor
  5. 15Muppet with a noted feud with a pet rock
  6. 16Jane Austen title character
  7. 17Event that might include juggling, singing and magic tricks
  8. 19___ wave (summer phenomenon)
  9. 20Northern neighbor of Namibia
  10. 21Eat, as cattle might
  11. 22Serpent seen on a sarcophagus
  12. 24Looks of total confusion
  13. 27Calm, as a lake
  14. 29Bard of ___, nickname for Shakespeare
  15. 30Intellectual thoroughness
  16. 31Olden days
  17. 33Texter's "If you ask me ..."
  18. 36Three-part fire safety technique
  19. 40Opposite of NNW
  20. 41Give the boot
  21. 42When farmers typically wake up
  22. 43Flatbread with a palindromic name
  23. 45Steve ___, 2003 N.F.L. M.V.P.-winning quarterback
  24. 462009 comedy about a bachelor party and its aftermath
  25. 51Golf ball holder
  26. 52Colorful glows
  27. 53Grapefruit relative
  28. 55Some urban pollution
  29. 56Sections of a choir .... as hinted at by this puzzle's circled letters
  30. 60It comes and goes each day
  31. 61"Frozen" princess
  32. 62Hall-of-Fame hoopster Thomas
  33. 63Where Eve reached for the forbidden fruit
  34. 64Grammy-winning singer Lisa
  35. 65Like the crying face emoji

Down

  1. 1Used a chair
  2. 2In the manner of
  3. 3Archipelago that helped shape Darwin's "On the Origin of Species"
  4. 4Prayer ender
  5. 5Nuthatch or nightingale
  6. 6Cybertruck maker
  7. 7___ Omar, first Somali American in Congress
  8. 8Angsty subculture
  9. 9Piglet's mother
  10. 10Capital city between Baghdad, Iraq, and Ashgabat, Turkmenistan
  11. 11Negative attack on a political opponent
  12. 12Knock the socks off
  13. 13Parking garage listing
  14. 18Relayed, as a story
  15. 211960s Pontiac muscle car
  16. 22Auto loan figs.
  17. 23Cuts open, as an envelope
  18. 2524-___ gold
  19. 26"Frozen" reindeer
  20. 28European capital that's home to the Little Mermaid statue
  21. 31Offspring
  22. 32Word after black or special
  23. 34Temporary suspensions
  24. 35Basic skateboarding jump
  25. 37Singer Chappell with the double-platinum album "The Rise and Fall of a Midwest Princess"
  26. 38Dilapidated
  27. 39Instrument played by a Muse
  28. 44Some small batteries
  29. 45Modern lead-in to coin or stock
  30. 46One of the five senses
  31. 47Like sticky summer weather
  32. 48Wash away
  33. 49Express one's thoughts
  34. 50Words of interest to a language learner, informally
  35. 54Operate on using a beam
  36. 56Actor Kilmer
  37. 57The Yoko of "Dear Yoko"
  38. 58Paver's goop
  39. 59Like a shrinking violet

The answer to “Like a shrinking violet” in the New York Times crossword is SHY — a 3-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on July 6, 2026, a Monday puzzle, at 59-Down. Below you'll find why that fill fits, every other answer we've recorded for this clue, and links into the puzzle it came from.

“Like a shrinking violet” answer

SHY (3 letters)

Reveal the solution one letter at a time with the tiles above if you'd rather nudge yourself toward it than see the whole word at once. Just want it outright? The answer is SHY.

Why the answer is SHY

Think of someone who prefers blending into the background rather than being the center of attention. 🌸

What does SHY mean?

Reading the plain dictionary sense of SHY is often the fastest way to see why it answers this clue.

(adjective)

  • nervous or timid in the company of other people
  • less than; short of
  • (of a plant) not bearing flowers or fruit well or prolifically

When else has “Like a shrinking violet” appeared?

New York Times reuses clues across dates, sometimes with a different answer depending on the grid. Here's where this exact clue has shown up, and what the answer was each time — handy when you're checking whether today's fill is the only one.

July 6, 2026 (most recent) → SHY. We haven't indexed another appearance of this exact clue yet.

Frequently asked questions

What is the answer to “Like a shrinking violet”?

The answer is SHY, a 3-letter word. It most recently appeared in the New York Times crossword on July 6, 2026.

How many letters is the answer to “Like a shrinking violet”?

3 letters: SHY.

When did this clue appear?

Most recently in the New York Times crossword on July 6, 2026 (a Monday puzzle), at 59-Down.

Can “Like a shrinking violet” have a different answer?

Yes — New York Times sometimes reuses a clue with a different solution to fit the grid. The answers we've recorded for each date it appeared are listed above when available.

Where can I find the rest of this day's NYT Crossword answers?

The full grid for July 6, 2026 is on the NYT Crossword answers page, with every clue and answer from that puzzle.

New York Times Crossword is published by The New York Times; WordHint is an independent site and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the publisher.

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