shadow (redirected from shadows)

be afraid of your own shadow

to be extremely nervous and easily frightened. She's always having panic attacks, she's the kind of person who's afraid of her own shadow.

beyond/without a shadow of a doubt

if something is true beyond a shadow of a doubt, there is no doubt that it is true. This is without a shadow of a doubt the best film I have seen all year.

See also: beyond, doubt, without

in someone's shadow

if you are in someone's shadow, you receive less attention and seem less important than them. For most of his life he lived in the shadow of his more famous brother.

in/under something's shadow

if you are in the shadow of an unpleasant event, you cannot forget that it has happened or might happen in the future. The local population were living under the shadow of war.

a shadow of your former self

if you are a shadow of your former self, you are less strong or less powerful than you were in the past. He came back to work after 3 months, completely cured of the cancer but a shadow of his former self.

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beyond the shadow of a doubt

so that it is obviously true. Letters in her father's own handwriting would prove his guilt beyond a shadow of a doubt.

See also: beyond, doubt

in the shadow of someone

receiving little attention because someone else is better known or more skillful. Tom was a good lawyer, but he was always in the shadow of his famous father.

Usage notes: often used after live: Living in the shadow of a glamorous sister, Hilda was quiet and shy.

in the shadow of something

1. influenced by something bad that has happened or could happen. The children of the survivors lived their lives in the shadow of the Holocaust. The organization is trying to protect civil rights in the shadow of terrorism.

2. near something. Her house is located in the shadow of the state capitol.

a shadow of your/its former self

a smaller, weaker, or less important form of someone or something. With most of its best players traded away, the team was reduced to a shadow of its former self.