Where does “short” come from?

Short comes from Middle English schort, from Old English sċeort, from Proto-Germanic skurtaz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European (s)ker- meaning to cut or separate.

short (English): Having a small distance from one end or edge to...

Definitions

  1. Having a small distance from one end or edge to...

Ancestry of “short”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle Englishschortshort as opposed to being tall or long
2Old Englishsċeort—
3Proto-West Germanicskurtshort; lacking, deficient
4Proto-Germanicskurtazshort; lacking, deficient
5Proto-Indo-European(s)ḱer-dung, manure, filth; manure, dung, filth

Words derived from “short”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European (s)ḱer- →