short

Meanings

• the location on a baseball field where the shortstop is stationed
• accidental contact between two points in an electric circuit that have a potential difference
• the fielding position of the player on a baseball team who is stationed between second and third base
• cheat someone by not returning him enough money
• create a short circuit in
• primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration
  • "a short life"
  • "a short flight"
  • "a short holiday"
  • "a short story"
  • "only a few short months"
• (primarily spatial sense) having little length or lacking in length
  • "short skirts"
  • "short hair"
  • "the board was a foot short"
  • "a short toss"
• low in stature; not tall
  • "he was short and stocky"
  • "short in stature"
  • "a short smokestack"
• not sufficient to meet a need
  • "money is short"
  • "on short rations"
  • "food is in short supply"
  • "short on experience"
• (of memory) deficient in retentiveness or range
  • "a short memory"
• not holding securities or commodities that one sells in expectation of a fall in prices
  • "a short sale"
  • "short in cotton"
• of speech sounds or syllables of relatively short duration
  • "the English vowel sounds in `pat', `pet', `pit', `pot', putt' are short"
• less than the correct or legal or full amount often deliberately so
  • "regularly gives short weight"
• lacking foresight or scope
  • "a short view of the problem"
  • "shortsighted policies"
  • "shortsighted critics derided the plan"
• tending to crumble or break into flakes due to a large amount of shortening
  • "shortbread is a short crumbly cookie"
  • "a short flaky pie crust"
• marked by rude or peremptory shortness
  • "the salesgirl was very short with him"
• quickly and without warning
• without possessing something at the time it is contractually sold
  • "he made his fortune by selling short just before the crash"
• clean across
  • "the car's axle snapped short"
• at some point or distance before a goal is reached
  • "he fell short of our expectations"
• so as to interrupt
  • "She took him up short before he could continue"
• at a disadvantage
  • "I was caught short"
• in a curt, abrupt and discourteous manner
  • "he talked short with everyone"
  • "he said shortly that he didn't like it"

Synonyms

abruptly, brusk, brusque, curt, curtly, dead, forgetful, inadequate, light, little, myopic, poor, scant, short circuit, short-change, short-circuit, shortly, shortsighted, shortstop, suddenly, unawares, unforesightful, unretentive