selling myself short

Meaning

1. 1phraseidiominformal

   Judging your own abilities, achievements or worth to be lower than they really are, so that you accept less than you deserve.

   Grammar: The reflexive pronoun must match the subject: I am selling myself short, but she is selling herself short.

   Patterns

   • sell yourself short
   • sell yourself short by doing something

   I think I was selling myself short when I said I couldn't lead the project.

   Applying only for entry-level jobs felt like selling myself short, given my degree and experience.

   She kept selling herself short in interviews, mentioning her failures before her successes.

Word forms

Common combinations

stop selling yourself short

You have three years of experience, so stop selling yourself short in your CV.

be accused of selling yourself short

He was often accused of selling himself short because he never asked for a raise.

feel like you are selling yourself short

If you feel like you are selling yourself short at work, it may be time to move on.

without selling yourself short

You can be humble without selling yourself short.

risk selling yourself short

By staying quiet in the meeting, you risk selling yourself short.

Synonyms and how they differ

undersell yourself

It is a close match but sounds more like a marketing or job-hunting term, while the headword idiom works in any part of life.

underestimate yourself

It describes only the wrong judgment in your head, whereas selling yourself short also suggests you act on it and lose out.

downplay your abilities

It suggests you deliberately make your skills sound smaller, perhaps out of politeness, rather than truly believing they are small.

put yourself down

It is harsher and more negative, focusing on self-criticism rather than on missing an opportunity.

Opposites

Word family

sell verb

to exchange something for money

short adjective

here, less than the right or fair amount

undersell verb

to promote something as less valuable than it is

shortchange verb

to give someone less than they are owed

self-deprecating adjective

making small of yourself, often with humor

Commonly confused: selling myself short or sell short?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “selling myself short”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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