Shrinking Violet Meaning
A shrinking violet is an extremely shy or timid person; someone afraid to express their opinions or to assert themselves.
Usage Notes
This idiom seems to be more often used in the negative, as in ‘no shrinking violet,’ to describe someone who is the opposite of shy and timid. It can, of course, be used in the positive. It is more often applied to women, most likely because it refers to a flower and Vilet is also used as a female’s name in English.
Sentence Examples
“She was no shrinking violet and often expressed strong opinions and social stances, but she was reserved and quiet in large groups.”
“Nancy was described by her teachers as somewhat of a shrinking violet but she really came into her own once she went to college, where she gained many new friends and became more outgoing.”
“He’s a controlling and narcissistic man so it’s no wonder he was attracted to such a shrinking violet as Sarah.”
“This national spelling bee is a tough nut. I’ve seen it chew kids up and spit them out. So if you want to get there you can’t be a shrinking violet. You have to stand up and show them what you can do.” — Akeelah and the Bee (2006)
“I’m gonna have to ask you to watch the potty mouth. I’m no shrinking violet, I like to curse myself. But at the stag night, and the whatnot. Not around Amy’s mother, swearing upsets her.” — Stay (2007)
Origin
This idiom alludes to flowers of the genus Viola, or violets (also including pansies). While the flowers themselves are small, the plant itself is aggressive and fails to live up to the allusion in the expression. The violet has long been associated with loyalty, chastity, and modesty, however. The English poet, essayist, and critic, Leigh Hunt, may have originally coined the term ‘shrinking violet’ for what seems like, in the wild, rather than in ornamental gardens, an unassuming flower that grows close to the ground and is often obscured by larger plants:
There was the buttercup, struggling from a white to a dirty yellow; and a faint-coloured poppy; and here and there by the thorny underwood a shrinking violet (1820).
An intriguing aspect of the violet, which may or may not be associated with its symbology, is that its scent, called ionone (from iona, Greek for violet combined with ketone) has the ability to take away your sense of smell. When you sniff a violet you get a whiff of its very sweet and ‘powdery’ smell for a moment and then it is gone, as the chemical, after binding to scent receptors, temporarily renders them non-functioning. After a few moments, the sense of smell returns and you can once again smell the scent of the flower, only to have it disappear again, a phenomenon that would have appeared to be magic in older times.
