ʃɔ:t adj., adv., n., & v. --adj. 1 a measuring
little;
not long
from end to end (a short distance). b not long in
duration;
brief (a short
time ago;
had a short life). c seeming
less than the stated
amount (a
few short years of happiness). 2 of
small height; not
tall (a short
square tower;
was shorter than average). 3 a (usu. foll. by
of, on) having a
partial or
total lack;
deficient;
scanty (short of spoons; is
rather short on sense). b not far-reaching;
acting or
being near at
hand (within short range). 4 a
concise; brief (kept
his speech short). b
curt;
uncivil (was short
with her). 5 (of the memory)
unable to
remember distant events. 6 Phonet. &
Prosody of a
vowel or
syllable: a having the
lesser of the
two recognized durations. b
unstressed. c (of an
English vowel) having a
sound other than
that called long (cf.
LONG(1) adj. 8). 7 a (of pastry) crumbling; not
holding together. b (of clay) having
poor plasticity. 8
esp.
Stock Exch. a (of stocks, a
stockbroker, crops, etc.)
sold or selling
when the amount is not in hand, with
reliance on getting the
deficit in time
for delivery. b (of a bill of exchange) maturing at an
early date. 9 Cricket a (of a ball) pitching relatively near the bowler. b (of a
fielder or his position) relatively near the
batsman. 10 (of a
drink of spirits)
undiluted. --adv. 1
before the
natural or expected time or
place; abruptly (pulled up short;
cut short the celebrations). 2 rudely; uncivilly (spoke to
him short). --n. 1 colloq. a short drink, esp. spirits. 2 a short
circuit. 3 a short
film. 4 Stock Exch. a a
person who sells short. b (in pl.) short-dated stocks. 5 Phonet. a a short syllable or vowel. b a mark indicating that a vowel is short. 6 (in pl.) a
mixture of
bran and coarse flour. --v.tr. & intr. short-circuit. øbe
caught (or taken) short 1 be put at a
disadvantage. 2 colloq. urgently
need to
urinate or
defecate.
bring up (or
pull up) short check or
pause abruptly.
come short be
inadequate or disappointing. come short of
fail to
reach or amount
to. for short as a short
name (Tom for short).
get (or have) by the short hairs colloq. be in
complete control of (a person). go short (often foll. by of) not
have enough. in short to
use few words; briefly. in short
order US
immediately. in the short
run over a short
period of time. in short supply
scarce. in the short
term = in the short run.
make short
work of
accomplish,
dispose of,
destroy,
consume, etc. quickly. short and
sweet esp.
iron. brief and
pleasant. short-arm (of a blow etc.) delivered with the arm not
fully extended. short
back and sides a
haircut in
which the
hair is cut short at the back and the sides. short
change insufficient money given as change. short-change v.tr.
rob or
cheat by giving short change. short circuit an
electric circuit
through small
resistance, esp.
instead of the resistance of a
normal circuit. short-circuit 1
cause a short circuit or a short circuit
in. 2
shorten or
avoid (a
journey, work, etc.) by
taking a
more direct route etc. short
commons insufficient
food. short cut 1 a route
shortening the
distance travelled. 2 a
quick way of accomplishing
something. short date an early date for the maturing of a bill etc. short-dated
due for early
payment or
redemption. short-day (of a plant) needing the period of
light each day to
fall below some limit to cause
flowering. short
division Math. division in which the
quotient is
written directly without being worked
out in
writing. short drink a
strong alcoholic drink served in small measures. short-eared
owl an owl, Asio flammeus, frequenting
open country and
hunting at
dawn or
dusk. short for an
abbreviation for ('Bob' is short for 'Robert'). short fuse a quick
temper. short game
Golf approaching and putting. short-handed
undermanned or
understaffed. short
haul 1 the
transport of goods over a short distance. 2 a short-term
effort. short
head Racing a distance less than the
length of a horse's head. short-head v.tr.
beat by a short head. short
hundredweight see HUNDREDWEIGHT. short list
Brit. a list of selected candidates from which a
final choice is
made. short-list v.tr. Brit. put on a short list. short-lived
ephemeral; not long-lasting. short mark =
BREVE 2. short
measure less than the
professed amount. short metre Prosody a
hymn stanza of
four lines with 6, 6, 8, and 6 syllables. short
notice an insufficient length of
warning time. short
odds nearly equal stakes or chances in
betting. short of 1 see
sense 3a of adj. 2 less than (nothing short of a miracle). 3 distant from (two miles short of home). 4 without
going so
far as;
except (did
everything short of destroying it). short of
breath panting, short-winded. short on colloq. see sense 3a of adj. short order US an order in a
restaurant for quickly cooked food. short-pitched Cricket (of a ball) pitching relatively near the bowler. short-range 1 having a short
range. 2 relating to a
fairly immediate future time (short-range possibilities). short
rib =
floating rib. short
score Mus. a score not giving
all parts. short
shrift curt or
dismissive treatment. short
sight the
inability to
focus except on comparatively near objects. short-sleeved with sleeves not reaching below the
elbow. short-staffed having insufficient staff. short story a story with a fully developed
theme but shorter than a novel. short
suit a suit of less than four cards. short temper
self-control soon or
easily lost. short-term occurring in or relating to a short period of time. short time the
condition of
working fewer than the
regular hours
per day or days per
week. short
title an abbreviated
form of a title of a
book etc. short ton see TON. short
view a
consideration of the present
only, not the future. short
waist 1 a
high or
shallow waist of a
dress. 2 a short upper
body. short
wave a
radio wave of
frequency greater than 3
MHz. short
weight weight less than it is alleged to
be. short whist whist with
ten or
five points to a game. short wind quickly exhausted breathing-power. short-winded 1 having short wind. 2
incapable of sustained effort. øøshortish adj. shortness n. [OE sceort f. Gmc:
cf.
SHIRT, SKIRT]