Definition of short
(Entry 1 of 4)
1a : having little length
b : not tall or high : low
2a : not extended in time : brief a short vacation
b : not retentive
a short memory
c : expeditious, quick made short work of the problem
d : seeming to pass quickly
made great progress in just a few short years
3a of a speech sound : having a relatively short duration
b : being the member of a pair of similarly spelled vowel or vowel-containing sounds that is descended from a vowel that was short in duration but is no longer so and that does not necessarily have duration as its chief distinguishing feature
short i in sin
c of a syllable in prosody (1) : of relatively brief duration
(2) : unstressed
4 : limited in distance
a short trip
5a : not coming up to a measure or requirement : insufficient in short supply
b : not reaching far enough
the throw to first was short
c : enduring privation
d : insufficiently supplied
short of breath short of cash short on brains
7 : choppy sense 2
8 : payable at an early date
a short loan
b of metal : brittle under certain conditions
10a : not lengthy or drawn out
a short speech
b : made briefer : abbreviated
11a : not having goods or property that one has sold in anticipation of a fall in prices
b : consisting of, relating to, or engaging in the sale of securities or commodities that the seller does not possess or has not contracted for at the time of the sale
short sale a short seller
12 : near the end of a tour of duty
in short order
: with dispatch : quickly
short
adverbDefinition of short (Entry 2 of 4)
1 : in a curt manner
2 : for or during a brief time
short-lasting
3 : at a disadvantage : unawares caught short
4 : in an abrupt manner : suddenly the car stopped short
5 : at some point or degree before a goal or limit aimed at or under consideration
the bombs fell short quit a month short of graduation
6 : clean across
the axle was snapped short
7 : by or as if by a short sale
short
nounDefinition of short (Entry 3 of 4)
1 : the sum and substance : upshot
2a : a short syllable
b : a short sound or signal
3 shorts plural
a : a by-product of wheat milling that includes the germ, fine bran, and some flour
b : refuse, clippings, or trimmings discarded in various manufacturing processes
4a : knee-length or less than knee-length trousers
—usually used in plural
b shorts plural : short drawers
c : a size in clothing for short men
5a : one who operates on the short side of the market
b shorts plural : short-term bonds
7 : short circuit
8 : shortstop
9a : short subject
b : a brief story or article (as in a newspaper)
for short in short
: as an abbreviation
named Katherine or Kate for short
: by way of summary : briefly
short
verbshorted; shorting; shorts
Definition of short (Entry 4 of 4)
1 transitive + intransitive : short-circuit The electrical system also received upgrades: Most rooms had only three or fewer outlets, and plugging in multiple devices usually shorted the circuit.— Steven Wyman-Blackburn The housing association gave her a "temperamental" electric shower but this cannot be used as the time as other electric items—including the television—as it will cause the circuit to short.— Anna Slater —often used with out in U.S. English… microscopic particles of airborne dust are large enough to short out the chip's circuitry.— Michael Rothschild… were sabotaging the system by deliberately entering incorrect information into the computers and, if all else failed, hosing the computers down until they shorted out.— John Sedgwick
2 transitive, informal : shortchange, cheat When she returned minutes later, she handed me a twenty-dollar bill and a five. No change and no receipt, which meant I couldn't call her on the fact that she'd shorted Henry by sixty-six cents.— Sue Grafton
3 transitive, finance : to sell (a security) short in expectation of a fall in prices
a heavily shorted stock Today [in 2003], only two per cent of all United States stock-market shares are shorted, and even with looser restrictions short selling is likely to remain uncommon.— James Surowiecki
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Time Traveler for short
The first known use of short was before the 12th century
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