You’re watching Lingo Phoenix’s word of the day for January 26.

Australia Day

Today’s word is short, spelled short.

short /ʃɔːt $ ʃɔːrt/

stop short idiom

to stop or be stopped just before doing or reaching something

I had to slam on the brakes when the car in front of me stopped short.

He was about to say something, then stopped short.

—often + of

The boss said that she was unhappy with some employees, but she stopped short of naming which ones.

come up short idiom

to fail to win or achieve something

We're so close to getting the job done, but we keep coming up short.

The state education budget came up short last year.

short of breath idiom

having difficulty breathing

She was short of breath and unable to talk after her run.

He is overweight and gets short of breath just walking to his car.