1
as in briefly
in a few words
the sudden closing of the restaurant was announced only with a shortly worded sign: "Out of Business"
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in soon
at or within a short time
the meeting will begin shortly, so don't go too far away to find a bathroom
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of shortly
The teacher sent an email to the school counselor shortly afterward to flag the student's question, a screenshot of which was shown in court.
—
Mirna Alsharif, NBC news, 16 Feb. 2026
Red Flag Warnings are issued when there are critical fire conditions either actively occurring or starting shortly.
—Josh Kelly, Oklahoman, 16 Feb. 2026
Velasquez surrendered to a responding Morgan Hill police officer shortly afterward.
—Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 15 Feb. 2026
There was another shortly thereafter, in fact.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 15 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shortly
Mirna Alsharif, NBC news, 16 Feb. 2026
Red Flag Warnings are issued when there are critical fire conditions either actively occurring or starting shortly.
—Josh Kelly, Oklahoman, 16 Feb. 2026
Velasquez surrendered to a responding Morgan Hill police officer shortly afterward.
—Robert Salonga, Mercury News, 15 Feb. 2026
There was another shortly thereafter, in fact.
—Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 15 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shortly
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shortly
Adverb
-
After his final season, 1972, Mazeroski coached briefly for the Pirates and the Seattle Mariners and was an infield instructor for Pittsburgh during spring training.—
Hillel Italie,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Feb. 2026
-
Characters are even briefly exposed to it without any lasting negative effects.—
Alan Bradley,
Space.com,
21 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
Breakfast is a busy affair, but those in signature suites can eat in the lounge (soon to be renovated but with a great view) or order room service.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
22 Feb. 2026
-
The strike could come as soon as Saturday or Sunday.—
Reg Chapman,
CBS News,
21 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
Few other comedians do this so consistently or concisely.—
John Roy,
Vulture,
13 Jan. 2026
-
Well, first of all, that was incredibly concisely summarized.—
Jennifer Maas,
Variety,
26 Dec. 2025
Adverb
-
Metrics shave off this valuable information precisely because these experiences can’t be easily communicated.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
20 Feb. 2026
-
The primary challenge is that the energy frequency must match the accelerator cavity precisely at 805 Megahertz.—
Aman Tripathi,
Interesting Engineering,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shortly.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shortly. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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