Meaning & use
mousy person
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Meaning
nouncountable
A person who is quiet, shy, and not noticeable, often with a dull or unattractive appearance.
Grammar: Countable; used with a/an or plural: a mousy person, two mousy people.
Patterns
- a mousy person
- be a mousy person
- feel like a mousy person
He was a mousy person who rarely spoke in meetings.
She felt like a mousy person among her glamorous friends.
The character is a mousy person who transforms into a confident leader.
Word forms
| plural | mousy persons |
|---|---|
| plural | mousy people |
Common combinations
- a mousy little person
- She was a mousy little person who hardly ever made eye contact.
- a mousy personality
- His mousy personality made him an easy target for bullies.
- a mousy appearance
- Her mousy appearance hid a sharp intellect.
- feel like a mousy person
- After the promotion, he no longer felt like a mousy person.
Synonyms and how they differ
- shy
- Focuses on nervousness around others, not necessarily on appearance; mousy also implies a dull, unremarkable look.
- timid
- Emphasizes lack of confidence and easily frightened; mousy is more about being quiet and blending in.
- unassuming
- More positive, meaning modest and not seeking attention; mousy can sound slightly negative.
Opposites
Commonly confused: mousy person or mousey?
mousy person vs mousey
A variant spelling of mousy, but also used to mean 'like a mouse' in smell or taste. The person sense is usually spelled mousy.
Practice
Choose the best word to complete the sentence: 'Despite her ______ appearance, she was a brilliant public speaker.'
Choose one answer.
'Mousy' is an adjective describing a shy, dull appearance. 'Mouse' is a noun, 'mousy person' is a noun phrase that would need a different structure, and 'mousy people' is plural and does not fit before 'appearance'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “mousy person”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.