avoiding eye contact
Looking deliberately away
Avoiding eye contact is deliberately not meeting someone's gaze, often signaling discomfort, shyness, dishonesty, or submission.
In some cultures it shows respect rather than evasiveness.
She kept avoiding eye contact during the interview.
The behavior can be conscious strategy or unconscious habit, and its interpretation depends heavily on context.
- gazeFixed, intent look
- looking downDirecting sight lower
- shyReserved and retiring
- nervousUneasy and apprehensive
- deer in headlightsParalyzed by sudden shock
glancing · floor · downcast · uncomfortable · shifty · evasive · looking away · submissive · anxious · fight or flight · guilt · shame · feet · sideways · awkward · fidgeting · blushing · timid
- Deception Cluestelltale signs, red flags, warning signs, shifty eyes, stammering
- awkward momentsoops, cringe, embarrassment, yikes, awkward
- behaviorshabit, aggressive, agitation, conduct, passive
- anxiety signspanic, nervousness, worry, worrying, trembling
- timiditybashfulness, shyness, timidness, timorousness, meekness
- withdrawalwithdrawing, cash withdrawal, ATM withdrawal, early withdrawal, fund withdrawal
avoiding eye contactstaring
Gazing without break
locking eyes · fixed stare · intense stare · gazing · eyeballing
avoid, avoids, avoided, avoidance, avoiding, avoidable, unavoidable, unavoidably, eyelet