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Él no es tímido, mejor dicho, es muy prudente.

Él no es tímido, mejor dicho, es muy prudente.
He is not shy, or rather, he is very cautious.
From Lesson 324:Or rather (mejor dicho, más bien)·Spanish (Latin America)

Breakdown of Él no es tímido, mejor dicho, es muy prudente.

ser
to be
él
he
no
no, not
muy
very
tímido
shy
mejor dicho
or rather
prudente
cautious

Questions & Answers about Él no es tímido, mejor dicho, es muy prudente.

Why use mejor dicho here instead of más bien?
Both are used to clarify or correct, but they have a slight difference. Mejor dicho literally means "better said" and is used to self-correct the exact word you just used (switching tímido for prudente). Más bien leans closer to "rather" or "on the contrary," often contrasting two different ideas rather than just finding a better word. However, you could technically use either one here!
Does prudente just mean "prudent" like in English?
Yes, but it is used much more commonly in everyday Spanish. While "prudent" can sound very formal or financial in English, prudente in Spanish is the standard word for "cautious," "careful," or "sensible."
Why are we using es instead of está for being cautious?
We use es (from the verb ser) because tímido (shy) and prudente (cautious) are being described as inherent personality traits of this person, rather than temporary moods or states.
Do I always need commas around mejor dicho?
Yes! Because mejor dicho acts as a discourse marker (a phrase that organizes what you are saying rather than changing the grammar of the sentence), it should be separated by commas, just like "or rather" in English.

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