1
as in little
having relatively little height
a lot of boys are shorter than the girls in middle school, but they quickly catch up by high school
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in brief
not lasting for a considerable time
fortunately for those of us in the hot sun, the graduation speech was short and to the point
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in lacking
not coming up to an expected measure or meeting a particular need
regrettably, the art supplies are short this year, so you'll have to share
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in crisp
having a texture that readily breaks into little pieces under pressure
short pastry
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in blunt
being or characterized by direct, brief, and potentially rude speech or manner
I didn't mean to be so short with you by responding to your request with a snippy "I'm busy!"
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in abruptly
with great suddenness
the bicyclist ahead of me unexpectedly pulled up short and I unavoidably plowed into him
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to squeeze
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
charged that the used-car dealer had been shorting customers for years
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in feature
Related Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of short
Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 23 Feb. 2026
The short video shows Mychelle in a hospital gown picking at a pastry, along with what appears to be a case for a portable breast pump in her lap.
—Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 23 Feb. 2026
Adam Echelman, Los Angeles Times, 22 Feb. 2026
Luka Doncic had 25 points and LeBron James got the 43,000th point of his career while scoring 20 for the Lakers, who fell short at home against a probable NBA title contender for the third time in two weeks.
—ABC News, 22 Feb. 2026
Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 6 Jan. 2026
Tesla recalled certain 2024-2025 Model 3, Model S, 2023-2025 Model X, and Model Y vehicles because the cars had computer circuit boards that may short, resulting in the loss of the rearview camera image, according to documents released online by NHTSA.
—Keith Laing, USA Today, 31 Dec. 2025
Peter Debruge, Variety, 1 Feb. 2026
Sundresses, shorts, and short sleeves are ideal for scorching days, but might make a low temperature indoors a bit more uncomfortable.
—Patricia Shannon, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for short
Adjective
For travelers headed to the beach, flying into Montego Bay tends to be the best option, offering decent proximity and shorter travel times to popular destinations on the north and west coasts, like Ocho Rios and Negril.
—Carley Rojas Avila, Travel + Leisure, 23 Feb. 2026
The short video shows Mychelle in a hospital gown picking at a pastry, along with what appears to be a case for a portable breast pump in her lap.
—Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 23 Feb. 2026
Adverb
But as technology evolved and proliferated, privacy laws repeatedly fell short in protecting California’s students — at the same time that the federal government has tried to collect increasing amounts of personal information, Addis said.
—Adam Echelman, Los Angeles Times, 22 Feb. 2026
Luka Doncic had 25 points and LeBron James got the 43,000th point of his career while scoring 20 for the Lakers, who fell short at home against a probable NBA title contender for the third time in two weeks.
—ABC News, 22 Feb. 2026
Verb
Of course the star who made red carpet shorts a thing (twice) will wear a tank any time.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 6 Jan. 2026
Tesla recalled certain 2024-2025 Model 3, Model S, 2023-2025 Model X, and Model Y vehicles because the cars had computer circuit boards that may short, resulting in the loss of the rearview camera image, according to documents released online by NHTSA.
—Keith Laing, USA Today, 31 Dec. 2025
Noun
What began as a 14-minute documentary short for The New Yorker Studios landed top honors from The New Yorker film critic Justin Chang and his two fellow jurors at this year’s indie fest.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 1 Feb. 2026
Sundresses, shorts, and short sleeves are ideal for scorching days, but might make a low temperature indoors a bit more uncomfortable.
—Patricia Shannon, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for short
Recent Examples of Synonyms for short
Adjective
-
How about the little things, like mini bar, or shower goodies.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
22 Feb. 2026
-
In fact, very little separates them.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
22 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The Suns opened the fourth with a 9-0 run, but a 3-pointer by Harper, followed by an and-one White floater and another three by Scheierman, snuffed out the brief rally.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
25 Feb. 2026
-
Our snow chances are set to return on Sunday, with a brief round of morning snow looking possible according to model data.—
Ron Smiley,
CBS News,
25 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
But Bob is historically tardy and his research and prep work is historically always pretty lacking.—
Outside Online,
Outside Online,
25 Feb. 2026
-
The millions of taxpayer dollars saved by eliminating this wasteful expenditure can be used toward academic achievement, which by all accounts is severely lacking.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
22 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The crisp, flaky tortilla is fried in-house, and the inside is as described.—
Jess Fleming,
Twin Cities,
26 Feb. 2026
-
One standout look paired them with a crisp white blazer, black heels, a designer bag, and a chic pillbox hat for an elegant, luxe vibe that proves capris can be anything but basic.—
Amanda Le,
InStyle,
26 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Much of the rest, as the months and years passed, consisted of nothing more than blunt, basic, run-of-the-mill boredom.—
Daniel Smith,
The Atlantic,
27 Feb. 2026
-
On Friday, Bella Hadid stepped out in Milan to promote her new collaboration with Miss Sixty, rocking blunt platinum bangs reminiscent of the fictional pop star.—
Hannah Malach,
InStyle,
27 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
Minnesota envisioned him as a kick returner who would add receiver depth, but on his first kick return in the team’s first preseason game, Moore was injured when he was pulled abruptly to the ground.—
Dianna Russini,
New York Times,
22 Feb. 2026
-
PreCheck was affected at the Milwaukee Mitchell airport this morning, then abruptly reopened after DHS reversed course.—
Hope Karnopp,
jsonline.com,
22 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Its basic ingredients include tequila, lime juice (ideally freshly squeezed), orange liqueur like triple sec, and usually salt on the rim.—
Mike Snider,
USA Today,
21 Feb. 2026
-
Many are no doubt operating with the salary-cap space required to squeeze an extension for McDuffie into their budget.—
Sam McDowell
February 20,
Kansas City Star,
20 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Anything stand out about other services and features?—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
25 Feb. 2026
-
The tech features alone make this compact SUV feel premium, even at the entry level.—
Scotty Reiss,
Parents,
24 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Short.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/short. Accessed 28 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
