Word · Frequency #22104
shortness
短；矮小
the property of being short in physical length or height
- 1.
The property of being short, of being small of stature or brief.
矮小或短暂的特性。
- 2.
The result or product of being short.
矮小或短暂的结果或产物。
- 3.
The property of being short or terse.
简短或简练的特性。
不足；缺乏；简短；简略；矮小或短暂的特性。；矮小或短暂的结果或产物。；简短或简练的特性。
In use
His shortness made it difficult for him to reach the top shelf.
Everyone appreciated the shortness of the speech, since the audience was very tired.
The villagers worried about the shortness of drinking water in the dry season.
the shortness of sth
此结构强调某物本身很短（长度、时间等），通常带定冠词 the。
The shortness of the speech gave everyone more time for questions.
演讲的简短让所有人有更多时间提问。
shortness of sth
此结构表示缺乏、不足，后接抽象名词（如 time、funds）。
Shortness of time meant we had to skip the last part.
时间不足意味着我们不得不跳过最后一部分。
shortness of breath
shortness of breath 是固定说法，指呼吸困难或气短，不能改作 breath shortness。
Connections
Collocations
- shortness of breath
- 气短；呼吸困难
- The patient complained of shortness of breath after climbing the stairs.病人抱怨爬楼梯后气短。
- shortness of time
- 时间不足
- Due to shortness of time, we had to skip the last part of the presentation.由于时间不足，我们不得不跳过演示的最后一部分。
- shortness of temper
- 脾气急躁；易怒
- His shortness of temper often got him into trouble at work.他脾气急躁，经常在工作中惹上麻烦。
- shortness of life
- 生命短暂
- The poem reflects on the shortness of life and the passage of time.这首诗感叹生命短暂和时光流逝。
- shortness of stature
- 身材矮小
- Despite his shortness of stature, he was a formidable basketball player.尽管他身材矮小，却是一名可怕的篮球运动员。
Learner notes
Memory Tip
记 shortness：short 是“短的”，ness 是名词后缀。想象短尺子量布总差一截——既“短小”又“不足”。
Context & Register
语域：mixed 常见场景：书面/正式语体、医学/健康（气短）、技术/化工（脆性） shortness 作为名词通常多用于书面或正式语体；在搭配 shortness of breath 中属中性，常见于医学或健康话题；在化工等技术语境中则指“脆性”。日常口语里一般较少单独使用。
Pronunciation & Spelling
shortness 按所给音标读作 /ˈʃɒːtnɪs/。下列词中没有任何一个与 shortness 完全押韵：fitness /ˈfɪtnəs/ 和 witness /ˈwɪtnəs/ 彼此押韵，但它们的元音 /ɪ/ 不同于 shortness 的 /ɒː/；goodness 和 business 仅与 shortness 共享 -ness 后缀，business 的 -ness 读 /znəs/（s 发 /z/ 音），而 shortness 的 -ness 读 /nɪs/ 或 /nəs/。short 是 shortness 的开头部分，但只对应拼写和第一个音节；shirt 与 short 形近，读 /ʃɜːt/，注意不要混淆。
Learn the forms together
页面下方列出了常见词形变化。学习时注意它们在句子中的语法位置。
Dictionary facts from ECDICT, WIKTIONARY.