After reading the following passage, answer the questions which follow:

I must say that, beyond occasionally exposing me to laughter, my constitutional shyness has been of no great disadvantage to me. In fact, I can see that, on the contrary, it has been all to my advantage. My hesitancy in speech, which was once an annoyance, is now a pleasure. Its greatest pleasure has been that it has taught me the economy of words. I have naturally formed the habit of restraining my thoughts. And I can now, give myself the certificate that a thoughtless word hardly ever escapes of my tongue or pen. I do not recollect ever having had to regret anything in my speech or writing. I have thus been spared many a mishap and waste of time. Experience has taught me that silence is part of the spiritual discipline of a votary of truth. Proneness to exaggerate, to suppress or modify the truth, wittingly or unwittingly, is a natural weakness of man and silence is necessary in order to surmount it. A man of few words will rarely be thoughtless in his speech; he will measure every word.

The expression, "my constitutional shyness" in the given passage would mean _________

(Select the right answer from the options given below):

The innate and natural shyness in the author

The correct answer is: Option (3) → The innate and natural shyness in the author

In this context, "constitutional" refers to something that is part of one's basic nature, disposition, or constitution (as in, the fundamental makeup of a person), rather than related to a legal document or government. The author describes it as something he was born with or developed inherently.