Why And When A Man Avoids Eye Contact With A Woman – 5 Reasons And 13 Meanings

I remember back in high school I had a crush on a senior, we used to steal glances and blush every time our eyes met. But then out of nowhere, he’d just avoid me. So, ladies, I know exactly how it feels when a man avoids eye contact with a woman. His reason was that he used to get awkward while his friends were around, so he would just try not to look at me. Understandable? Well, maybe. 

Anyhow, all I am saying is that there could be endless reasons why this happens, especially when your partner avoids eye contact with you all of a sudden. But instead of hammering your head with doubts and questions, why not get to know what these possibilities might be? And instead of living in assumptions, why not try to understand your man better?

What Does It Mean When A Man Avoids Eye Contact With A Woman?

We all have felt those butterflies while stealing glances and conversing with the eyes, the language of love with that someone special. Be it with your crush, your boyfriend, or your husband – flirting with the eyes never gets old, it still gives you the same goosebumps as it did the first time, doesn’t it?

Well, when someone makes eye contact with you, it becomes easier to understand them. Research has shown that locked glances trigger your limbic mirror system. This leads to the release of the same/similar neurons in both of your brains, in turn helping you bond better. Interesting, right?

But what if he avoids making eye contact with you? It can leave your mind abuzz with questions like: 

• What if it’s his way of saying he doesn’t want to take things forward? 
• What if he doesn’t like me?
• Is he cheating on me?
• Or is there a possibility that he has a crush on me?

Any of it could be true. But there’s more to it. 

Remember I told you about my high school crush? Turns out that other than being the awkward shy guy, another reason for avoiding eye contact with me was that he was not sure about me. Ouch. 

To get more perspective, I decided to ask a few male friends what, according to them, does it mean when a man avoids eye contact with a woman. Here are the top three things they told me: 

1. Karen, my childhood friend, said, “I don’t know. Now that you’ve asked me, I am realizing that we, men, usually don’t pay much attention to it. Some men might, but I and the guys I know surely don’t. We don’t realize it’s affecting you. Unless, of course, we are angry or in trouble, that’s one of the signs we are trying to ignore you intentionally.”
2. Jacob, my colleague, told me, “I am too shy to make eye contact with anyone. We have been working together for six months and I never looked you in the eye.” True that.
3. Lastly, Mason, my Instagram friend, said, “At times, it is unintentional, we don’t know if you’re expecting something here, but yes I do this thing where if I like a girl, I start dodging her a little, it’s an instinct for me.” 

Rings a bell? Well, as we said, there can be various reasons for a guy to avoid eye contact with you. And we will talk in detail about it. But more importantly, you need to understand that there’s a psychology behind avoiding eye contact and you need to read through these clues to understand the reason and the meaning when a guy avoids eye contact with you. So, let’s dive right in. 

Related Reading: 13 Things To Practice To Attract Love Into Your Life

5 Probable Reasons A Guy Is Avoiding Eye Contact With You

Several factors lead a man to avoid eye contact with a woman. Many of these are related to avoiding eye contact psychology. And you’ll have to pay close attention if you want to figure out why the love of your life or your potential love interest is trying to avoid eye contact with you. As it’s said, better be prepared than hurt. So, here’s a list of the top 5 reasons that are making him avoid looking into your eyes: 

1. He’s totally into you

The most popular reason for “he makes eye contact with everyone but me” is attraction. A guy might be avoiding looking directly into your eyes because he has a major crush on you, or in fact, might as well be in love with you. It’s one of the signs he finds you irresistible.  

As we are aware, men are not the best at expressing their feelings. And so, the easiest way out is to hide them. The other reason might be that since he finds you extremely attractive and is crushing hard on you, he might get intimidated by all of it. And if this is the case, don’t you worry. He will eventually confess his feelings to you. 

2. He may be dealing with mental health issues

Your guy might be dealing with some mental health issues. He might have anxiety, ADHD, PTSD, bipolar disorder, or the like, which makes it difficult for him to make eye contact. Just know that he does not have anything against you. He might even be interested in you and enjoy spending time with you and still find it impossible to make eye contact. 

3. He is a shy guy

Perhaps, he avoids eye contact up close because he is just shy. It could be as simple as this. And it’s probably not just you, chances are he avoids eye contact while talking to anyone. Truth be told, in most cases when a man avoids eye contact with a woman, he is simply shy or introverted. Such people restrain from making eye contact so that they can avoid awkward moments, especially in public. If you are thinking of dating a shy guy like him in the future, then be prepared for such awkward moments.

4. Sorry, there’s no spark

There’s no easy way to put it but a guy may avoid looking you in the eye if he doesn’t feel a spark with you. Perhaps, there never was any spark from his side or it has faded over time.  In both cases, especially when you’re not aware that he is feeling this way, he’d try to avoid even looking at you. 

5. He has something to hide

Do you feel he avoids eye contact while talking to you? It could be because he is hiding something. We all know when someone is hiding something or telling a lie, they tend to avoid eye contact. And he will keep doing so because he it is one of the cheating guilt signs and he is afraid of being caught. 

13 Meanings When A Man Avoids Eye Contact With A Woman

What does it mean when someone doesn’t make eye contact with you while talking or when in close vicinity to you? Well, after reading through all the reasons, you must be aware by now that there can be multiple meanings to this action or reaction from anyone’s end. You don’t have to worry about it and feel vulnerable about it but if it’s still bothering you and you simply want to figure out what’s the deal, read on and understand how avoiding eye contact plays out in different situations: 

1. Take your time to accept that he is the submissive one 

How does it feel and what does it mean when someone doesn’t make eye contact with you while talking? We are trying to figure out different reasons but it doesn’t feel good. Don’t keep feeling bad for yourself, instead take the matter into your hands. Trust me, some men really like it. If you can see that he is interested but is not making a move, maybe he is waiting for you to make one.

Related Reading: 11 Warning Signs That You’re Settling For Less In Your Relationships

2. He is probably biting his nails out of nervousness

You make him too nervous, in fact to an extent that he is not even able to make eye contact with you. Don’t worry, it’s not as bad as it sounds. There is a fair chance that he is extremely attracted to you, and come on, who isn’t nervous in front of the love of their life? He probably is afraid of being judged or getting rejected and more than that, he must be scared to lose you. 

3. Did something go wrong? Because he might be mad at you 

The easiest way for a man to show his anger is by avoiding eye contact. This happens especially if he is your boyfriend or husband because then he knows he has all the right to be angry. 

If he is used to avoiding eye contact when hurt, then try to remember the interactions and conversations you’ve had with him recently. If you had an argument or you think you might have said or done something to hurt him, then it’s your cue to communicate better and talk it out with him.

4. He avoids eye contact because of social anxiety

If you’re socially anxious, you’d know that every time you’re out in public, all you want to do is RUN. And if you’re not socially anxious, please know that this is the case, always. So, if he avoids eye contact up close, especially in public or crowded settings, it could just be his anxiety taking the better of him. And if he is socially anxious, he probably is an overthinker too, who is afraid of judgment and rejection. 

5. When a man avoids eye contact with a woman, he might be intentionally ignoring her

Eye contact clearly shows your intention toward someone. But making sure and even going out of the way to avoid any sort of eye contact might be a sign that he is avoiding you or trying to show his indifference toward you. If it’s a stranger or someone you don’t care about, don’t stress about it. But if it’s someone dear to you and he is avoiding eye contact all of a sudden, the best way is to talk it out instead of killing yourself with baseless assumptions. 

6. He is hiding his emotions 

We know how men are usually afraid of showing their emotions, especially when they are sad. They don’t want you to see their vulnerability. So, he turns to the simplest way out, avoiding eye contact. 

Related Reading: Personal Space In A Relationship Holds It Together

7. You’re an intimidating diva to him

He just probably thinks you’re way out of his league. That’s all, there’s no simpler way to put it. He might be crazy about you but can’t bear the thought of rejection, so he prefers to keep his feelings to himself. You may notice that he tries to be around you and act distant at the same time. He might also be intimidated by you because of the surroundings and the people you hang out with. So, if you have feelings for him too, go get him yourself. 

8. He has no interest in interacting with you 

It might be simply because he has no interest in hanging out with you. Or he might have lost interest in you over time. He would rather do anything else than be with you at the moment. He is avoiding eye contact so he has to spend as little time with you as possible. I know it must have been hard to hear, but better be prepared than hurt.

9. It’s all chaos in his head 

He might be confused about some conversation or argument between you two or your relationship. Maybe he is having second thoughts and doubting his feelings for you. 

In such a case, the best thing to do is to sit down and have a healthy conversation with him. Try to understand where he’s coming from, how he is feeling, and what made him feel that way. If you want to make your relationship work, try your best to resolve whatever it is that’s pushing him away. 

10. He simply doesn’t want to talk right now  

Who says only girls have mood swings? Guys have them too, but not as frequent and scheduled though. If he is in one of his swings, you might want to steer clear of his way or try to make him feel good. It has nothing to do with you and is just a phase. But you need to be understanding during this phase, acknowledge it, and don’t push him. The reason why he is avoiding eye contact is probably that he needs some space and doesn’t want to talk right now. 

Related Reading: When Is The Honeymoon Phase Over? 15 Signs To Watch Out For

11. Not for you to have. Sorry.

Well, if you’re totally into him and he can see that and he’s still avoiding eye contact with you, then he might not be interested in you. It could also be his way of telling you that he is happily taken. That makes this one of the signs he is ignoring you for someone else. So…you know what to do. Find another man for yourself instead of wasting time on someone who cannot be yours. 

12. He has low self-esteem 

Let’s just say he does not consider himself worthy of you. He might be crazy about you but he is just so shy or so low on self-esteem that he possibly cannot gather the courage to look at you or ask you out. 

13. He has no idea, there are 10 other things on his mind

It is possible that he doesn’t even have an idea that he has been avoiding eye contact with you. He is simply too busy to notice or take any action on it. It has nothing to do with you but you’re surely not his priority. And if he is yours, you should initiate the first move or talk about how you feel because of a lack of attention from him, especially if you’re in a relationship. 

I hope you were able to figure out the reason why he seems to be ignoring you. No matter what the reason, if this person is important to you, make sure to talk it out with him. Tell him how you feel, because communication is the key to everything you desire.

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