1. present participle of quail; showing fear or losing courage in the face of danger or difficulty

Examples

• She stood quailing before the angry teacher.
• The soldiers were quailing at the sound of enemy gunfire.
• He found himself quailing under her stern gaze.
• The witness was quailing on the stand during cross-examination.
• Rather than quailing from the challenge, she decided to face it head-on.
• The dog was quailing in the corner after being scolded.