Meaning & use
selling yourself short
Last updated
“selling yourself short” is a form of “sell yourself short”.
Meanings
phraseidiomfigurative
Underestimating your own abilities or value and presenting yourself as less capable than you really are.
Grammar: Reflexive: the pronoun must match the subject, as in sell herself short.
Patterns
- sell yourself short
- stop selling yourself short
You are selling yourself short if you think you cannot do this job.
She kept selling herself short in interviews.
Stop selling yourself short; your essay is excellent.
phraseidiomfigurative
Accepting less money, praise or opportunity than you deserve because you do not argue for yourself.
Grammar: Often followed by by or when plus a gerund: by accepting the first offer.
Patterns
- sell yourself short by doing something
He is selling himself short by taking such a low salary.
By not applying, you are selling yourself short.
Freelancers who never raise their rates end up selling themselves short.
Word forms
| base form | sell yourself short |
|---|---|
| past tense | sold yourself short |
Common combinations
- stop selling yourself short
- You should stop selling yourself short.
- constantly selling yourself short
- She is constantly selling herself short.
- selling yourself short at interviews
- Many graduates end up selling themselves short at interviews.
- without selling yourself short
- You can be humble without selling yourself short.
- don't sell yourself short
- Don't sell yourself short when you negotiate.
Synonyms and how they differ
- underestimating yourself
- Underestimating yourself is the plain, neutral version, while selling yourself short sounds more like friendly advice.
- undervaluing yourself
- Undervaluing yourself stresses worth and pay, which is the second meaning.
- downplaying
- Downplaying means playing something down on purpose, even modestly, rather than actually believing you are less able.
- being too modest
- Being too modest focuses on manners and humility, whereas selling yourself short suggests real loss.
Opposites
Word family
- sell verb
- to give in exchange for money
- short adjective
- not enough or too little
- self-esteem noun
- confidence in your own worth
- underrate verb
- to think something is less good than it is
Commonly confused: selling yourself short or selling short?
selling yourself short vs selling short
Selling short is a stock market term for betting that a price will fall, and has nothing to do with confidence.
Practice
You have three years of experience, so asking for such a low salary is ___.
Choose one answer.
Selling yourself short means undervaluing yourself. The other idioms mean something different.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “selling yourself short”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.