Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “shortcut” come from?

Shortcut combines English short, from Old English sċeort, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European (s)ker-, with cut, meaning to take a route or method that is shorter or more direct than the standard one.

shortcut (English): A path between two points that is faster than the...

Definitions

  1. A path between two points that is faster than the...

Ancestry of “shortcut”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishshortHaving a small distance from one end or edge to...
2Middle Englishschortshort; short , brief, quick; ephemeral, having a...
3Old Englishsċeort—
4Proto-West Germanicskurtshort; lacking, deficient
5Proto-Germanicskurtazshort; lacking, deficient
6Proto-Indo-European(s)ḱer-dung, manure, filth; manure, dung, filth

Words derived from “shortcut”

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