"Once bitten, twice shy" related to horses?

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Shannon.Jacobs.nospam@gmail.com - 09 Jan 2007 04:06 GMT

I had the impression that the origin of this expression was related to
a horse bitten by a fly and shying two times as a result. In other
words, the horse becomes skittish and nervous for a while after being
bitten. Is that a false explanation of the origin of the term? If it's
incorrect, then where did the expression actually come from?

My impression has been that the modern interpretation of "shy" in the
sense of easily embarrassed is not really related to the origin of the
term. However, I might also be misinterpreting contemporary usage. It
seems like many modern users are thinking something along the lines of
'Felt mistreated in a prior relationship, and therefore scared of
getting into another one.'

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Oleg Lego - 09 Jan 2007 04:39 GMT

The Shannon.Jacobs.nospam@gmail.com entity posted thusly:

>I had the impression that the origin of this expression was related to
>a horse bitten by a fly and shying two times as a result. In other
>words, the horse becomes skittish and nervous for a while after being
>bitten. Is that a false explanation of the origin of the term? If it's
>incorrect, then where did the expression actually come from?

I don't think this is the origin, or even the sense of the 'shy' in
the expression.

>My impression has been that the modern interpretation of "shy" in the
>sense of easily embarrassed is not really related to the origin of the
>term.

Right.

> However, I might also be misinterpreting contemporary usage. It
>seems like many modern users are thinking something along the lines of
>'Felt mistreated in a prior relationship, and therefore scared of
>getting into another one.'

I think this is the right meaning. "to shy away from" is to avoid
dealing with something you don't want to deal with.

"Once bitten, twice shy", simply means (IMO) "I tried that once and it
was unpleasant, so I'm not going to try it again." or "The last time I
did that I got hurt, so I'll avoid it from now on."

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Mark Brader - 09 Jan 2007 06:14 GMT

>> I had the impression that the origin of this expression was related to
>> a horse bitten by a fly and shying two times as a result. In other
>> words, the horse becomes skittish and nervous for a while after being
>> bitten. Is that a false explanation of the origin of the term? ...

> "Once bitten, twice shy", simply means (IMO) "I tried that once and it
> was unpleasant, so I'm not going to try it again." or "The last time I
> did that I got hurt, so I'll avoid it from now on."

Yep, that makes sense to me. I suggest that the metaphor is specifically
about approaching an animal you don't know.

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Jeffrey Turner - 09 Jan 2007 13:06 GMT

>>>I had the impression that the origin of this expression was related to
>>>a horse bitten by a fly and shying two times as a result. In other
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> Yep, that makes sense to me. I suggest that the metaphor is specifically
> about approaching an animal you don't know.

Generally one of the opposite sex.

--Jeff

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The shepherd always tries to persuade
the sheep that their interests and
his own are the same. --Stendhal

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Ray O'Hara - 09 Jan 2007 13:18 GMT

> I had the impression that the origin of this expression was related to
> a horse bitten by a fly and shying two times as a result. In other
[quoted text clipped - 8 lines]
> 'Felt mistreated in a prior relationship, and therefore scared of
> getting into another one.'

Shy is a polite way of saying some is afraid.

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Evan Kirshenbaum - 09 Jan 2007 21:21 GMT

>> I had the impression that the origin of this expression was related
>> to a horse bitten by a fly and shying two times as a result. In
[quoted text clipped - 11 lines]
>
> Shy is a polite way of saying some is afraid.

I'd say "hesitant" or "wary" rather than afraid.

Looking at Google Books, the phrase starts to show up right around
1850, with "once bit, twice shy" appearing in Mayne Reid's 1851 _The
Scalp Hunters_ and William Jerdan's 1853 Autobiography, and "once
caught, twice shy" in John Wood's _Sketches and Anecdotes of Animal
Life_. The last was in reference to a mouse he was trying to catch
for a second time, but he calls it an "old proverb".

It really seems like this should be the moral of some well-known
fable, but I can't seem to turn it up if it is.

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Shannon Jacobs - 11 Jan 2007 03:04 GMT

> > I had the impression that the origin of this expression was related to
> > a horse bitten by a fly and shying two times as a result. In other
[quoted text clipped - 10 lines]
>
> Shy is a polite way of saying some is afraid.

Well, as the OP my main response is "how quickly they forget"... There
is definitely a verbal sense of "shy" that describes certain behaviors
of a horse, though I understand that few people have much firsthand
experience with horses these days. Still, such expressions as "shy away
from" remain in use. I'm not even sure how to interpret this latest
response, either in relation to shy as an adjective or in relation to
the original expression.

I would like to thank the responders, but so far the replies have
merely confirmed my understanding of the contemporary usage, and none
of them have addressed the actual etymology. If I still had access to
an OED, it might be easy to answer the question... Or maybe not.

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Discussion Groups / English Usage / January 2007

"Once bitten, twice shy" related to horses?