timid
adj.shy and nervous. You use this to describe someone who lacks confidence and is easily frightened.
adj.showing a lack of courage or confidence; easily frightened. Often used to describe personality traits or hesitant actions.
“The timid child hid behind her mother's legs.”
“He gave a timid knock on the door, unsure if he was actually welcome at the party.”
“Investors remained timid despite the positive economic reports, fearing that the market's recent stability was merely a temporary pause before another significant downturn.”
Typically used attributively before a noun or predicatively after linking verbs like 'be', 'seem', or 'appear'.
From Middle French timide, from Latin timidus (“full of fear, fearful, timid”), from timeō (“to fear”).
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.