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Long vs. Short — What's the Difference?

Long vs. Short — What's the Difference?

Difference Between Long and Short

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Long

Extending or traveling a relatively great distance.

Short

Measuring a small distance from end to end
Short dark hair
A short flight of steps
The bed was too short for him

Long

Having relatively great height; tall.

Short

Lasting or taking a small amount of time
Visiting London for a short break
A short conversation

Long

Having the greater length of two or the greatest length of several
The long edge of the door.
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Short

Relatively small in extent
He wrote a short book
A short speech

Long

Of relatively great duration
A long time.

Short

(of a vowel) categorized as short with regard to quality and length (e.g. in standard British English the vowel /ʊ/ in good is short as distinct from the long vowel /uː/ in food).

Long

Of a specified linear extent or duration
A mile long.
An hour long.

Short

(of a person) terse; uncivil
He was often sharp and rather short with her

Long

Made up of many members or items
A long shopping list.

Short

(of odds or a chance) reflecting or representing a high level of probability
They have been backed at short odds to win thousands of pounds

Long

Extending beyond an average or standard
A long game.

Short

(of pastry) containing a high proportion of fat to flour and therefore crumbly.

Long

Extending or landing beyond a given boundary, limit, or goal
Her first serve was long.

Short

(chiefly in sport) at, to, or over a relatively small distance
You go deep and you go short

Long

Tediously protracted; lengthy
A long speech.

Short

A drink of spirits served in a small measure.

Long

Concerned with distant issues; far-reaching
Took a long view of the geopolitical issues.

Short

A short film as opposed to a feature film.

Long

Involving substantial chance; risky
Long odds.

Short

A short sound such as a short signal in Morse code or a short vowel or syllable
Her call was two longs and a short

Long

Having an abundance or excess of
"politicians whose résumés are long on competence" (Margaret Garrard Warner).

Short

A short circuit.

Long

Having a holding of a commodity or security in expectation of a rise in price
Long on soybeans.

Short

A person who sells short.

Long

(Linguistics) Having a comparatively great duration. Used of a vowel or consonant.

Short

A mixture of bran and coarse flour.

Long

(Grammar) Relating to or being the English speech sounds (ā, ē, ī, ō, ) that are tense vowels or diphthongs.

Short

Short-circuit or cause to short-circuit
The electrical circuit had shorted out
If the contact terminals are shorted, the battery quickly overheats

Long

Being of relatively great duration. Used of a syllable in quantitative prosody.

Short

Sell (stocks or other securities or commodities) in advance of acquiring them, with the aim of making a profit when the price falls
The rule prevents sellers from shorting a stock unless the last trade resulted in a price increase

Long

During or for an extended period of time
The promotion was long due.

Short

Having little length; not long.

Long

At or to a considerable distance; far
She walked long past the end of the trail.

Short

Having little height; not tall.

Long

Beyond a given boundary, limit, or goal
Hit the return long.

Short

Extending or traveling not far or not far enough
A short toss.

Long

For or throughout a specified period
They talked all night long.

Short

Lasting a brief time
A short holiday.

Long

At a point of time distant from that referred to
That event took place long before we were born.

Short

Appearing to pass quickly
Finished the job in a few short months.

Long

Into or in a long position, as of a commodity market.

Short

Not lengthy; succinct
Short and to the point.

Long

A long time
This won't take long.

Short

Rudely brief; abrupt
The owner was quite short with the new hire.

Long

(Linguistics) A long syllable, vowel, or consonant.

Short

Easily provoked; irascible
Has a short temper.

Long

One who acquires holdings in a security or commodity in expectation of a rise in price.

Short

Inadequate; insufficient
Oil in short supply.
Were short on experience.

Long

A garment size for a tall person.

Short

Lacking in length or amount
A board that is short two inches.

Long

Longs Trousers extending to the feet or ankles.

Short

Lacking in breadth or scope
A short view of the problem.

Long

To have an earnest, heartfelt desire, especially for something beyond reach.

Short

Deficient in retentiveness
A short memory.

Long

Having much distance from one terminating point on an object or an area to another terminating point usually applies to horizontal dimensions; see Usage Notes below.
It's a long way from the Earth to the Moon.
How long was your newborn baby?

Short

Holding a trading position that is inversely related to the price of a security or index
Short investors.
An investor who is short gold.

Long

Having great duration.
The pyramids of Egypt have been around for a long time.

Short

Of or relating to a short sale
A short position.

Long

Seemingly lasting a lot of time, because it is boring or tedious or tiring.

Short

Containing a large amount of shortening; flaky
A short pie crust.

Long

Not short; tall.

Short

Not ductile; brittle
Short iron.

Long

(finance) Possessing or owning stocks, bonds, commodities or other financial instruments with the aim of benefiting of the expected rise in their value.
I'm long in DuPont.
I have a long position in DuPont.

Short

(Linguistics) Of, relating to, or being a speech sound of relatively brief duration, as the first vowel sound in the Latin word mălus, "evil," as compared with the same or a similar sound of relatively long duration, as the first vowel sound in the Latin word mālus, "apple tree."

Long

(cricket) Of a fielding position, close to the boundary (or closer to the boundary than the equivalent short position).

Short

(Grammar) Of, relating to, or being a vowel sound in English, such as the vowel sound (ă) in pat or () in put, that is descended from a vowel of brief duration.

Long

Landing beyond the baseline, and therefore deemed to be out.
That forehand is long.

Short

Being of relatively brief duration. Used of a syllable in quantitative prosody.

Long

(gambling) Of betting odds, offering a very large return for a small wager.

Short

(Slang) Close to the end of a tour of military duty.

Long

Occurring or coming after an extended interval; distant in time; far away.

Short

Abruptly; quickly
Stop short.

Long

(archaic) On account of, because of.

Short

In a rude or curt manner.

Long

(linguistics) A long vowel.

Short

At a point before a given boundary, limit, or goal
A missile that landed short of the target.

Long

(prosody) A long syllable.

Short

At a disadvantage
We were caught short by the sudden storm.

Long

(music) A note formerly used in music, one half the length of a large, twice that of a breve.

Short

By means of a short sale
Selling a commodity short.

Long

(programming) A long integer variable, twice the size of an int, two or four times the size of a short, and half of a long long.
A long is typically 64 bits in a 32-bit environment.

Short

(Linguistics) A short syllable, vowel, or consonant.

Long

(finance) An entity with a long position in an asset.
Every uptick made the longs cheer.

Short

A brief film; a short subject.

Long

(finance) A long-term investment.

Short

A size of clothing less long than the average for that size.

Long

The long summer vacation at the English universities.

Short

Shorts Short pants extending to the knee or above.

Long

Longitude

Short

Shorts Undershorts.

Long

To take a long position in.

Short

A short sale.

Long

(intransitive) To await, aspire, desire greatly (something to occur or to be true).
She longed for him to come back.

Short

One that sells short.

Long

(archaic) To be appropriate to, to pertain or belong to.

Short

Shorts A byproduct of wheat processing that consists of germ, bran, and coarse meal or flour.

Long

(obsolete) To belong.

Short

Shorts Clippings or trimmings that remain as byproducts in various manufacturing processes, often used to make an inferior variety of the product.

Long

Over a great distance in space.
He threw the ball long.

Short

A short circuit.

Long

For a particular duration.
How long is it until the next bus arrives?

Short

A malfunction caused by a short circuit.

Long

For a long duration.
Will this interview take long?
Paris has long been considered one of the most cultured cities in the world.
She has known us as long as you
I haven't long to live.

Short

(Baseball) A shortstop.

Long

Drawn out in a line, or in the direction of length; protracted; extended; as, a long line; - opposed to short, and distinguished from broad or wide.

Short

To cause a short circuit in.

Long

Drawn out or extended in time; continued through a considerable tine, or to a great length; as, a long series of events; a long debate; a long drama; a long history; a long book.

Short

(Informal) To give (one) less than one is entitled to; shortchange.

Long

Slow in passing; causing weariness by length or duration; lingering; as, long hours of watching.

Short

To short-sell (a security or index).

Long

Occurring or coming after an extended interval; distant in time; far away.
The we may us reserve both fresh and strongAgainst the tournament, which is not long.

Short

To short-circuit.

Long

Having a length of the specified measure; of a specified length; as, a span long; a yard long; a mile long, that is, extended to the measure of a mile, etc.

Short

Having a small distance from one end or edge to another, either horizontally or vertically.

Long

Far-reaching; extensive.

Short

(of a person) Of comparatively small height.

Long

Having a supply of stocks or goods; prepared for, or depending for a profit upon, advance in prices; as, long of cotton. Hence, the phrases: to be, or go, long of the market, to be on the long side of the market, to hold products or securities for a rise in price, esp. when bought on a margin. Contrasted to short.

Short

Having little duration.
Our meeting was a short six minutes today. Every day for the past month it’s been at least twenty minutes long.

Long

A note formerly used in music, one half the length of a large, twice that of a breve.

Short

(followed by for) Of a word or phrase, constituting an abbreviation (for another) or shortened form (of another).
"Phone" is short for "telephone" and "asap" short for "as soon as possible".

Long

A long sound, syllable, or vowel.

Short

That is relatively close to the batsman.

Long

The longest dimension; the greatest extent; - in the phrase, the long and the short of it, that is, the sum and substance of it.

Short

Bowled so that it bounces relatively far from the batsman.

Long

To a great extent in space; as, a long drawn out line.

Short

That falls short of the green or the hole.

Long

To a great extent in time; during a long time.
They that tarry long at the wine.
When the trumpet soundeth long.

Short

(gambling) Of betting odds, offering a small return for the money wagered.

Long

At a point of duration far distant, either prior or posterior; as, not long before; not long after; long before the foundation of Rome; long after the Conquest.

Short

Brittle, crumbly. See shortbread, shortcake, shortcrust, shortening, hot short, cold-short.

Long

Through the whole extent or duration.
The bird of dawning singeth all night long.

Short

Abrupt; brief; pointed; petulant.
He gave a short answer to the question.

Long

Through an extent of time, more or less; - only in question; as, how long will you be gone?

Short

Limited in quantity; inadequate; insufficient; scanty.
A short supply of provisions

Long

By means of; by the fault of; because of.

Short

Insufficiently provided; inadequately supplied, especially with money; scantily furnished; lacking.
To be short of money
I'd lend you the cash but I'm a little short at present.
The cashier came up short ten dollars on his morning shift.

Long

To feel a strong or morbid desire or craving; to wish for something with eagerness; - followed by an infinitive, or by for or after.
I long to see you.
I have longed after thy precepts.
I have longed for thy salvation.
Nicomedes, longing for herrings, was supplied with fresh ones . . . at a great distance from the sea.

Short

Deficient; less; not coming up to a measure or standard.
An account which is short of the truth

Long

To belong; - used with to, unto, or for.
The labor which that longeth unto me.

Short

(colloquial) Undiluted; neat.

Long

A comparatively long time;
This won't take long
They haven't been gone long

Short

(obsolete) Not distant in time; near at hand.

Long

Desire strongly or persistently

Short

(finance) Being in a financial investment position that is structured to be profitable if the price of the underlying security declines in the future.
Short position
I'm short in General Motors because I think their sales are plunging.

Long

Primarily temporal sense; being or indicating a relatively great or greater than average duration or passage of time or a duration as specified;
A long life
A long boring speech
A long time
A long friendship
A long game
Long ago
An hour long

Short

(by extension) Doubtful of, skeptical of.

Long

Primarily spatial sense; of relatively great or greater than average spatial extension or extension as specified;
A long road
A long distance
Contained many long words
Ten miles long

Short

Of money: given in the fewest possible notes, i.e. those of the largest denomination.

Long

Of relatively great height;
A race of long gaunt men
Looked out the long French windows

Short

Abruptly, curtly, briefly.
They had to stop short to avoid hitting the dog in the street.
He cut me short repeatedly in the meeting.
The boss got a message and cut the meeting short.

Long

Holding securities or commodities in expectation of a rise in prices;
Is long on coffee
A long position in gold

Short

Unawares.
The recent developments at work caught them short.

Long

Of speech sounds (especially vowels) of relatively long duration (as e.g. the English vowel sounds in `bate', `beat', `bite', `boat', `boot')

Short

Without achieving a goal or requirement.
His speech fell short of what was expected.

Long

Used of syllables that are unaccented or of relatively long duration

Short

Relatively far from the batsman and hence bouncing higher than normal; opposite of full.

Long

Involving substantial risk;
Long odds

Short

(finance) With a negative ownership position.
We went short most finance companies in July.

Long

(of memory) having greater than average range;
A long memory especially for insults
A tenacious memory

Short

A short circuit.

Long

Planning prudently for the future;
Large goals that required farsighted policies
Took a long view of the geopolitical issues

Short

A short film.

Long

Having or being more than normal or necessary:
Long on brains
In long supply

Short

A short version of a garment in a particular size.
38 short suits fit me right off the rack.
Do you have that size in a short?

Long

For an extended time or at a distant time;
A promotion long overdue
Something long hoped for
His name has long been forgotten
Talked all night long
How long will you be gone?
Arrived long before he was expected
It is long after your bedtime

Short

(baseball) A shortstop.
Jones smashes a grounder between third and short.

Long

For an extended distance

Short

(finance) A short seller.
The market decline was terrible, but the shorts were buying champagne.

Short

(finance) A short sale or short position.
He closed out his short at a modest loss after three months.

Short

A summary account.

Short

(phonetics) A short sound, syllable, or vowel.

Short

(programming) An integer variable having a smaller range than normal integers; usually two bytes long.

Short

An automobile; especially in crack shorts, to break into automobiles.

Short

(transitive) To cause a short circuit in (something).

Short

To short circuit.

Short

(transitive) To shortchange.

Short

To provide with a smaller than agreed or labeled amount.
This is the third time I’ve caught them shorting us.

Short

To sell something, especially securities, that one does not own at the moment for delivery at a later date in hopes of profiting from a decline in the price; to sell short.

Short

(obsolete) To shorten.

Short

Deficient in.
We are short a few men on the second shift.
He's short common sense.

Short

(finance) Having a negative position in.
I don’t want to be short the market going into the weekend.

Short

Not long; having brief length or linear extension; as, a short distance; a short piece of timber; a short flight.
The bed is shorter than that a man can stretch himself on it.

Short

Not extended in time; having very limited duration; not protracted; as, short breath.
The life so short, the craft so long to learn.
To short absense I could yield.

Short

Limited in quantity; inadequate; insufficient; scanty; as, a short supply of provisions, or of water.

Short

Insufficiently provided; inadequately supplied; scantily furnished; lacking; not coming up to a resonable, or the ordinary, standard; - usually with of; as, to be short of money.
We shall be short in our provision.

Short

Deficient; defective; imperfect; not coming up, as to a measure or standard; as, an account which is short of the trith.

Short

Not distant in time; near at hand.
Marinell was sore offendedThat his departure thence should be so short.
He commanded those who were appointed to attend him to be ready by a short day.

Short

Limited in intellectual power or grasp; not comprehensive; narrow; not tenacious, as memory.
Their own short understandings reachNo farther than the present.

Short

Less important, efficaceous, or powerful; not equal or equivalent; less (than); - with of.
Hardly anything short of an invasion could rouse them again to war.

Short

Abrupt; brief; pointed; petulant; as, he gave a short answer to the question.

Short

Breaking or crumbling readily in the mouth; crisp; as, short pastry.

Short

Brittle.

Short

Not prolonged, or relatively less prolonged, in utterance; - opposed to long, and applied to vowels or to syllables. In English, the long and short of the same letter are not, in most cases, the long and short of the same sound; thus, the i in ill is the short sound, not of i in isle, but of ee in eel, and the e in pet is the short sound of a in pate, etc. See Quantity, and Guide to Pronunciation, 22, 30.

Short

A summary account.
The short and the long is, our play is preferred.

Short

The part of milled grain sifted out which is next finer than the bran.
The first remove above bran is shorts.

Short

Short, inferior hemp.

Short

Breeches; shortclothes.

Short

A short sound, syllable, or vowel.
If we compare the nearest conventional shorts and longs in English, as in "bit" and "beat," "not" and "naught," we find that the short vowels are generally wide, the long narrow, besides being generally diphthongic as well. Hence, originally short vowels can be lengthened and yet kept quite distinct from the original longs.

Short

In a short manner; briefly; limitedly; abruptly; quickly; as, to stop short in one's course; to turn short.
He was taken up very short, and adjudged corrigible for such presumptuous language.

Short

To shorten.

Short

To fail; to decrease.

Short

The location on a baseball field where the shortstop is stationed

Short

Accidental contact between two points in an electric circuit that have a potential difference

Short

The fielding position of the player on a baseball team who is stationed between 2nd and 3rd base

Short

Cheat someone by not returning him enough money

Short

Create a short-circuit in

Short

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

Short

Primarily spatial sense; having little length or lacking in length;
Short skirts
Short hair
The board was a foot short
A short toss

Short

Low in stature; not tall;
His was short and stocky
Short in stature
A short smokestack

Short

Not sufficient to meet a need;
An inadequate income
A poor salary
Money is short
On short rations
Food is in short supply
Short on experience

Short

Not holding securities or commodities that one sells in expectation of a fall in prices;
A short sale
Short in cotton

Short

Of speech sounds (especially vowels) of relatively short duration (as e.g. the English vowel sounds in `pat', `pet', `pit', `pot', putt')

Short

Containing a large amount of shortening; therefore tender and easy to crumble or break into flakes;
Shortbread is a short crumbly cookie
A short flaky pie crust

Short

Less than the correct or legal or full amount often deliberately so;
A light pound
A scant cup of sugar
Regularly gives short weight

Short

Used of syllables that are unaccented or of relatively brief duration

Short

(of memory) deficient in retentiveness or range;
A short memory

Short

Lacking foresight or scope;
A short view of the problem
Shortsighted policies
Shortsighted critics derided the plan
Myopic thinking

Short

Unwilling to endure;
She was short with the slower students

Short

Quickly aroused to anger;
A hotheaded commander

Short

Most direct;
Took the shortest and most direct route to town

Short

Marked by rude or peremptory shortness;
Try to cultivate a less brusque manner
A curt reply
The salesgirl was very short with him

Short

Quickly and without warning;
He stopped suddenly

Short

Without possessing something at the time it is contractually sold;
He made his fortune by selling short just before the crash

Short

Clean across;
The car's axle snapped short

Short

At some point or distance before a goal is reached;
He fell short of our expectations

Short

So as to interrupt;
She took him up short before he could continue

Short

At a disadvantage;
I was caught short

Short

Tightly;
She caught him up short on his lapel

Short

In a curt, abrupt and discourteous manner;
He told me curtly to get on with it
He talked short with everyone
He said shortly that he didn't like it

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