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)
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
7
8
: payable at an early date
a short loan
9
a
: containing or cooked with shortening
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
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
1
: the sum and substance : upshot
2
a
: 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
4
a
: 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
5
a
: one who operates on the short side of the market
b
shorts plural
: short-term bonds
6
7
8
9
a
b
: a brief story or article (as in a newspaper)
shorted; shorting; shorts
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
Steven Wyman-BlackburnThe 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. EnglishAnna Slater… microscopic particles of airborne dust are large enough to short out the chip's circuitry.—Michael Rothschild
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
John Sedgwick2
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
Sue Grafton3
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
James Surowiecki
Synonyms
Adjective
Adverb
Verb
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
Noun
The short before the main movie was very funny.
Verb
The lightning shorted the TV.
The hair dryer must have shorted.
See More
Recent Examples on the WebPhil Bourjaily, Field & Stream, 21 Sep. 2023
David Bowie, the Vaselines, Shocking Blue, Devo, and the Velvet Underground are among the many artists Nirvana borrowed (stole?) from during their short yet prolific career—these names alone showcase a surprisingly eclectic taste that was anything but the norm in most of their punk circles.
—Ana Leorne, Spin, 21 Sep. 2023
Shares of GameStop, a retailer of video games, zoomed from under $5 to an intraday high of nearly $500 amid a jokey viral campaign by small investors meant to counteract many Wall Street short sellers betting on the stock to collapse.
—Kyle Smith, WSJ, 21 Sep. 2023
That series netted her two Emmy awards for best composition and best children’s short from the series.
—Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 21 Sep. 2023
On your three-hour drive from Nashville, take a short detour off I-40 to Jackson's quirkiest attraction, Rusty's TV & Movie Car Museum—home to nostalgic artifacts like the Scooby-Doo Mystery Machine and Ecto-1 from Ghostbusters.
—Kelsey Ogletree, Southern Living, 21 Sep. 2023
At the South African state banquet at Buckingham Palace in November 2022, the necklace appeared much shorter, but the following month at the Diplomatic Corps reception at Buckingham Palace, the pendant had been added and the length was longer, as per its latest outing at Versailles.
—Monique Jessen, Peoplemag, 21 Sep. 2023
The campaign's goal, which includes a five-minute short film starring Jane Lynch, is to bring awareness to the benefits of play.
—Beth Ann Mayer, Parents, 21 Sep. 2023
Playing at a stadium with a different — but also strange — one Tuesday, Hays took advantage of Minute Maid Park’s shorter left field, blasting two home runs and leading the Orioles to a 9-5 victory.
—Jacob Calvin Meyer, Baltimore Sun, 20 Sep. 2023
Greg McKenna, Dallas News, 8 Sep. 2023
Behold the beautiful and beloved one-handed backhand, but do it quickly, because time is running short for tennis’s lustiest shot.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 1 Sep. 2023
The Bills have proven themselves to be a legit contender, despite falling short in the postseason the past two years.
—Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 2 Sep. 2023
Known for its famous slot canyons, Zion is ideal for hiking and canyoneering — though that doesn’t mean that the less athletic traveler will come up short on things to do.
—Josh Laskin, Travel + Leisure, 1 Sep. 2023
After falling short in the Division 1 semifinals to eventual champion Hingham, the Shamrocks return a talented team.
—Cam Kerry, BostonGlobe.com, 30 Aug. 2023
There are so many packages with three tight ends in the offense that the Cowboys can’t go short here.
—David Moore, Dallas News, 28 Aug. 2023
But invariably that doesn’t happen, and investors usually are the ones coming up short.
—Russ Wiles, USA TODAY, 28 Aug. 2023
The Bengals came up short when their 2-point conversion after Jackson’s fourth-quarter touchdown failed.
—Mark Inabinett | Minabinett@al.com, al, 26 Aug. 2023
John Hilliard, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Sep. 2023
While the Crimson Tide went through warmups in shorts and t-shirts, Oatis was wearing his No. 91 road jersey and dapped up teammates.
—Nick Alvarez | Nalvarez@al.com, al, 16 Sep. 2023
As the event was in collaboration with French fashion house Chanel, Allen, 38, fittingly wore a black patent jacket with matching silk shorts from the designer.
—Clare Fisher, Peoplemag, 15 Sep. 2023
The festival had a record number of submissions this year and will screen 70 features and 46 shorts with eight world premieres, three North American premieres, 11 U.S. premieres, 13 East Coast premieres and eight New York premieres.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 14 Sep. 2023
Anderson’s other three shorts are The Swan (hitting Netflix on Sept. 28), The Ratcatcher (Sept. 29) and Poison (Sept. 30).
—Ryan Gajewski, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Sep. 2023
Some of us are dying to pack away our denim shorts and iced coffees and swap out our knits and sweatpants.
—Claire Rutter, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2023
Shop a selection of city shorts and ballet flats, below.
—Emma Spedding, Vogue, 13 Sep. 2023
Clad in purple shorts and a jacket, Tinashe performed the sultry, percussion-heavy track in front of a live audience.
—Ej Dickson, Rolling Stone, 4 Sep. 2023
David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 Sep. 2023
Suddenly, every executive with a computer had the equivalent of a second-year management consultant at their side; every software developer had a super speedy coder able to short cut the easy stuff; every graphic artist had an instant solution to many of their illustration challenges.
—Alan Murray, Fortune, 29 Aug. 2023
Heim lined a ball to short that nearly became a double play ball.
—Evan Grant, Dallas News, 31 Aug. 2023
Moreover, since the bet could quickly go south at the slightest buying pressure, the collateral requirements that come with shorting VinFast could prove prohibitively high.
—Bychristiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 30 Aug. 2023
Detectives are attempting to speak with witnesses to short out the circumstances that led to the shooting.
—The Indianapolis Star, 28 Aug. 2023
With bases empty, Stella hit a hard grounder to short and beat out the throw to become the 10th girl to record a hit in the LLWS.
—CBS News, 19 Aug. 2023
The pleats on its front convincingly disguise the style as a skirt, but the back looks like a pair of trouser shorts with a back button pocket.
—Nicola Fumo, Peoplemag, 1 Aug. 2023
But that fund-raising tool was followed by AMC looking to converge the APE units and common shares to stop investors buying the lower-cost APE shares and shorting the higher-cost AMC common shares as part of an arbitrage trade.
—Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Aug. 2023
See More
Adjective
Labs have a comparatively short, dry, oily coat that insulates them in water.
—Phil Bourjaily, Field & Stream, 21 Sep. 2023
David Bowie, the Vaselines, Shocking Blue, Devo, and the Velvet Underground are among the many artists Nirvana borrowed (stole?) from during their short yet prolific career—these names alone showcase a surprisingly eclectic taste that was anything but the norm in most of their punk circles.
—Ana Leorne, Spin, 21 Sep. 2023
Shares of GameStop, a retailer of video games, zoomed from under $5 to an intraday high of nearly $500 amid a jokey viral campaign by small investors meant to counteract many Wall Street short sellers betting on the stock to collapse.
—Kyle Smith, WSJ, 21 Sep. 2023
That series netted her two Emmy awards for best composition and best children’s short from the series.
—Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 21 Sep. 2023
On your three-hour drive from Nashville, take a short detour off I-40 to Jackson's quirkiest attraction, Rusty's TV & Movie Car Museum—home to nostalgic artifacts like the Scooby-Doo Mystery Machine and Ecto-1 from Ghostbusters.
—Kelsey Ogletree, Southern Living, 21 Sep. 2023
At the South African state banquet at Buckingham Palace in November 2022, the necklace appeared much shorter, but the following month at the Diplomatic Corps reception at Buckingham Palace, the pendant had been added and the length was longer, as per its latest outing at Versailles.
—Monique Jessen, Peoplemag, 21 Sep. 2023
The campaign's goal, which includes a five-minute short film starring Jane Lynch, is to bring awareness to the benefits of play.
—Beth Ann Mayer, Parents, 21 Sep. 2023
Playing at a stadium with a different — but also strange — one Tuesday, Hays took advantage of Minute Maid Park’s shorter left field, blasting two home runs and leading the Orioles to a 9-5 victory.
—Jacob Calvin Meyer, Baltimore Sun, 20 Sep. 2023
Adverb
Lewisville’s desperation heave was batted down as its comeback attempt fell short in a 21-18 defeat at Highland Park.
—Greg McKenna, Dallas News, 8 Sep. 2023
Behold the beautiful and beloved one-handed backhand, but do it quickly, because time is running short for tennis’s lustiest shot.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 1 Sep. 2023
The Bills have proven themselves to be a legit contender, despite falling short in the postseason the past two years.
—Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 2 Sep. 2023
Known for its famous slot canyons, Zion is ideal for hiking and canyoneering — though that doesn’t mean that the less athletic traveler will come up short on things to do.
—Josh Laskin, Travel + Leisure, 1 Sep. 2023
After falling short in the Division 1 semifinals to eventual champion Hingham, the Shamrocks return a talented team.
—Cam Kerry, BostonGlobe.com, 30 Aug. 2023
There are so many packages with three tight ends in the offense that the Cowboys can’t go short here.
—David Moore, Dallas News, 28 Aug. 2023
But invariably that doesn’t happen, and investors usually are the ones coming up short.
—Russ Wiles, USA TODAY, 28 Aug. 2023
The Bengals came up short when their 2-point conversion after Jackson’s fourth-quarter touchdown failed.
—Mark Inabinett | Minabinett@al.com, al, 26 Aug. 2023
Noun
Some were joggers, dressed only in shorts and T-shirts.
—John Hilliard, BostonGlobe.com, 16 Sep. 2023
While the Crimson Tide went through warmups in shorts and t-shirts, Oatis was wearing his No. 91 road jersey and dapped up teammates.
—Nick Alvarez | Nalvarez@al.com, al, 16 Sep. 2023
As the event was in collaboration with French fashion house Chanel, Allen, 38, fittingly wore a black patent jacket with matching silk shorts from the designer.
—Clare Fisher, Peoplemag, 15 Sep. 2023
The festival had a record number of submissions this year and will screen 70 features and 46 shorts with eight world premieres, three North American premieres, 11 U.S. premieres, 13 East Coast premieres and eight New York premieres.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 14 Sep. 2023
Anderson’s other three shorts are The Swan (hitting Netflix on Sept. 28), The Ratcatcher (Sept. 29) and Poison (Sept. 30).
—Ryan Gajewski, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Sep. 2023
Some of us are dying to pack away our denim shorts and iced coffees and swap out our knits and sweatpants.
—Claire Rutter, Rolling Stone, 14 Sep. 2023
Shop a selection of city shorts and ballet flats, below.
—Emma Spedding, Vogue, 13 Sep. 2023
Clad in purple shorts and a jacket, Tinashe performed the sultry, percussion-heavy track in front of a live audience.
—Ej Dickson, Rolling Stone, 4 Sep. 2023
Verb
Gillespie and his movie-star cast aren’t trying to short squeeze the topic for statuettes.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 9 Sep. 2023
Suddenly, every executive with a computer had the equivalent of a second-year management consultant at their side; every software developer had a super speedy coder able to short cut the easy stuff; every graphic artist had an instant solution to many of their illustration challenges.
—Alan Murray, Fortune, 29 Aug. 2023
Heim lined a ball to short that nearly became a double play ball.
—Evan Grant, Dallas News, 31 Aug. 2023
Moreover, since the bet could quickly go south at the slightest buying pressure, the collateral requirements that come with shorting VinFast could prove prohibitively high.
—Bychristiaan Hetzner, Fortune, 30 Aug. 2023
Detectives are attempting to speak with witnesses to short out the circumstances that led to the shooting.
—The Indianapolis Star, 28 Aug. 2023
With bases empty, Stella hit a hard grounder to short and beat out the throw to become the 10th girl to record a hit in the LLWS.
—CBS News, 19 Aug. 2023
The pleats on its front convincingly disguise the style as a skirt, but the back looks like a pair of trouser shorts with a back button pocket.
—Nicola Fumo, Peoplemag, 1 Aug. 2023
But that fund-raising tool was followed by AMC looking to converge the APE units and common shares to stop investors buying the lower-cost APE shares and shorting the higher-cost AMC common shares as part of an arbitrage trade.
—Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 24 Aug. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'short.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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
Noun
circa 1586, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Verb
1904, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of short was
before the 12th century
Phrases Containing short
Articles Related to short
Dictionary Entries Near short
Cite this Entry
“Short.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/short. Accessed 25 Sep. 2023.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
short
1 of 4 adjective1
: 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
8
: cut down to a brief length
a short tax form
"doc" is short for "doctor"
short
2 of 4 adverb1
: with suddenness
stopped short
2
: so as not to reach as far as expected
fell short of the mark
short
3 of 4 noun1
: 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
4 of 4 verb
Legal Definition
short
1 of 2 adjective1
: 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
More from Merriam-Webster on short
Nglish: Translation of short for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of short for Arabic Speakers
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