Where does “short” come from?

short (Chinese) comes from English short, from Middle English schort, from Old English sċeort, from Proto-West Germanic skurt, from Proto-Germanic skurtaz, from Proto-Indo-European (s)ḱer- — dung, manure, filth; manure, dung, filth.

short (Chinese): insane; crazy; to malfunction; to short-circuit

Definitions

  1. insane; crazy; to malfunction; to short-circuit

Ancestry of “short”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishshortHaving a small distance from one end or edge to...
2Middle Englishschortshort as opposed to being tall or long
3Old Englishsċeort
4Proto-West Germanicskurtshort; lacking, deficient
5Proto-Germanicskurtazshort; lacking, deficient
6Proto-Indo-European(s)ḱer-dung, manure, filth; manure, dung, filth
Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)ḱer-Every word from Proto-Germanic skurtazEvery word from Proto-West Germanic skurt