Both Uses
reticent
in
The God of Small Things
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- For some reason (natural prudence perhaps, and an instinctive reticence with foreigners) she did not evince the keen interest that he seemed to expect from her about the Man with Twin Sons.†
Chpt 13reticence = reluctance -- usually to speak freely
- Anybody meeting him there for the first time might have thought him reticent. Almost timid.
Chpt 14 *reticent = reluctant to speak freely
Definitions:
-
(1)
(reticent) reluctant -- especially to speak freelySynonym Comparison (if you're into word choice):
Consider using taciturn rather than reticent when the reluctance to speak is a general disposition rather than a short-term situation brought about by particular circumstance. - (2) (meaning too rare to warrant focus)