short

1 of 2

adjective

ˈshȯrt 

1

a

: having little length

b

: not tall or high : low

2

a

: 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

3

a

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

5

a

: 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

6

a

: abrupt, curt

I'm sorry I was short with you

b

: quickly provoked

a short temper

7

: choppy sense 2

8

: payable at an early date

a short loan

9

a

: containing or cooked with shortening

also : flaky

short pastry

b

of metal : brittle under certain conditions

10

a

: not lengthy or drawn out

a short speech

b

: made briefer : abbreviated

11

a

: 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

shortish

ˈshȯr-tish 

adjective

shortness

ˈshȯrt-nəs 

noun

see also:

in short order

short

2 of 2

adverb

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

Synonyms of short

Adjective

• little
• small
• low

Adverb

• abruptly
• suddenly

Examples of short in a Sentence

Adjective

One of my legs is slightly shorter than the other.

He is short for his age.

the shortest day of the year

Life's too short to worry about the past.

The movie was very short.

You have done a lot in a short space of time.

a short burst of speed

I've only lived here for a short time.

She has made great progress in a few short years.

He visited for two short weeks.

Adverb

He threw the ball short.

the bicyclist ahead of me unexpectedly pulled up short and I unavoidably plowed into him

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Gritty Nobody ever said Pennsylvania was short on personality—and hometown pride takes a baffling but beloved form in Gritty, the Philly Flyers mascot. —Arati Menon, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 June 2026

Masks, gloves, boots and medications were initially all in short supply. —Justin Kabumba, Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2026

Adverb

But in terms of meeting expectations, nothing fell short quite like this one. —Sean McIndoe, New York Times, 5 June 2026

The bombs could be dropped not only on boats, but on blue cities that fall short on MAGA votes. —Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 4 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Old English sceort; akin to Old High German scurz short, Old Norse skortr lack

First Known Use

Adjective

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Adverb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing short

• at short notice
• at such short notice
• be on/have a short fuse
• bring up short
• by the short and curlies
• by the short hairs
• caught short
• come short of
• come up short
• come up short of
• cut short
• fall short
• fall short of expectations
• for short
• gets short of breath
• in short
• in short order
• in short supply
• in the short run
• in the short term
• make short/quick/light work of
• nothing short of
• on short notice
• on short rations
• on such short notice
• over the short run
• over the short term
• pull up short
• run short
• run short of
• sell short
• short and sweet
• short ballot
• short-circuit
• short-day
• short division
• short-eared owl
• short-form
• short fuse
• short-grass prairie
• short hair
• short-haired
• short-haul
• short-horned grasshopper
• short hundredweight
• short line
• short list
• short-lived
• short loin
• short memory
• short message service
• short-nosed cattle louse
• short of
• short of breath
• short of the mark
• short-order
• short-range
• short rations
• short ribs
• short run
• short-sheet
• short shrift
• short sight
• short space of time
• short-spoken
• short-staffed
• short-stay
• short-stop
• short story
• short straw
• short subject
• short-tailed weasel
• short temper
• short-tempered
• short-term
• short-term memory
• short time
• short ton
• short-weight
• short-winded
• stopped short of
• stop short
• taken short
• the long and short
• the long and the short
• the long and (the) short of it
• the short end of the stick
• the short run
• the short term

Rhymes for short

• bort
• corte
• court
• dort
• fort
• mort
• norte
• ort
• port
• porte
• quart
• snort

Kids Definition

short

1 of 4 adjective

ˈshȯ(ə)rt 

1

: having little length or height : not long or tall

2

a

: not long in time : brief

a short delay

b

: not great in distance

a short walk

3

: not remembering for long

a short memory

4

: of, relating to, or being one of the vowel sounds \ə, a, e, i, u̇\ and sometimes \ä\ and \ȯ\

5

a

: not coming up to the regular standard or to what is needed

gave short measure

in short supply

b

: not reaching far enough

the throw was short

c

: not having enough

short of cash

6

: easily upset

has a short temper

7

: flaky sense 2, crumbly

8

: cut down to a brief length

a short tax form

"doc" is short for "doctor"

shortish

-ish 

adjective

short

2 of 4 adverb

1

: with suddenness

stopped short

2

: so as not to reach as far as expected

fell short of the mark

short

3 of 4 noun

1

: a short signal or sound (as in Morse Code)

2

plural

a

: pants that reach to the knees or not as far as the knees

b

: short underpants

3

: short circuit

short

4 of 4 verb

: short-circuit

Legal Definition

short

1 of 2 adjective

1

: treated or disposed of quickly in court

the calendar for short causes

2

: having a short term

short loans

short leases

3

a

: not having goods or property that one has sold in anticipation of a fall in prices

a seller who was short at the time of the sale

b

: consisting of or relating to a sale of securities or commodities that the seller does not possess or has not contracted for at the time of the sale

a short position

see also short sale 1 at sale

4

: not involving or providing a sufficient amount of money to cover a loan see also short sale 2 at sale, short refinance

short

2 of 2 adverb

: by or as if by a short sale

sold the stock short