How to pronounce short
Say it like SHORT. Short is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress.
Click the play button next to American or British to hear how to pronounce short. Choose Slow to hear each sound clearly.
- SHORT
- Main stress
- Lighter stress
- Unstressed
Short pronunciation, sound by sound
Read the parts left to right, then blend them together without pausing.
- SHORTSay this part loudest and longest. The vowel is the "aw" in law.
American vs British pronunciation of short
- Americans pronounce the r after a vowel; most British speakers leave it silent and lengthen the vowel instead.
British respelling: SHAWT.
What does short mean?
- primarily temporal sense; indicating or being or seeming to be limited in duration“a short life”“a short flight”
- (primarily spatial sense) having little length or lacking in length“short skirts”“short hair”
- low in stature; not tall“he was short and stocky”“short in stature”
- 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
- quickly and without warning“he stopped suddenly”
- 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”
Where does short come from?
Cognate with Scots short, schort (“short”), French court, Dutch kort, German kurz, Old High German scurz (“short”) (whence Middle High German schurz), Old Norse skorta (“to lack”) (whence Danish skorte), Albanian shkurt (“short, brief”), La
Similar and opposite words
Opposite meaning
Words that rhyme with short
Practicing rhymes is a quick way to lock in the vowel sound of short.
Questions about saying short
How do you pronounce short?
Say SHORT. The American pronunciation is /ʃɔrt/. In British English it is /ʃɔːt/. Press play above to hear it at normal speed or slowly.
How many syllables are in short?
Short is a single syllable, so the whole word carries the stress. Broken into parts: SHORT.
Is short pronounced differently in British English?
Yes. Americans pronounce the r after a vowel; most British speakers leave it silent and lengthen the vowel instead. The British form is /ʃɔːt/ (SHAWT).