shrink from

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ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Verb

shrink from - avoid (one's assigned duties); "The derelict soldier shirked his duties"

avoid - refrain from doing something; "She refrains from calling her therapist too often"; "He should avoid publishing his wife's memories"

scrimshank - British military language: avoid work

malinger, skulk - avoid responsibilities and duties, e.g., by pretending to be ill

slack - avoid responsibilities and work, be idle

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References in classic literature ?

Merely tell me, my own darling, that I am not to shrink from heavy interest, and I will not shrink from it, I will not shrink from it--nay, I will shrink from nothing.

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The young man sat a few moments by the roadside, applauding himself greatly, and thinking with how clear a conscience he should meet the minister in his morning walk, nor shrink from the eye of good old Deacon Gookin.

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"Suppose you believed that she was wickedly bent on deceiving others for a purpose of her own--would you not shrink from such a woman in horror and disgust?"