Scort

adj. Short. I. marking the length of an object :--Scort sinewealt stán cilindrus, Wrt. Voc. i. 41, 35. Sceort bed wið eorþan coma, 41, 31. Sceort scip naviscella, 47, 60 : 56, 33. Ðæt ic ðé móste getǽcan swá sceortne (scortne, Cote. MS.) weg swá ic scyrtestne findan meahte, Bt. 40, 5 ; Fox 240, 17. Hé hæfþ scyrtran (sceortran, MS. R.) sceade ðonne seó sunne, Lchdm. iii. 252, 13. On lxv and þreó hundræd scy[r]tran and lengran ða ǽdron beóþ tódǽlede, 146, 6. II. marking height, not tall :--Hé (Zacchaeus) wæs scort on wæstme. Homl. Th. i. 580, 30. III. of time, (1) of a period of time :--Tó scortre hwíle for a short time, Past. 36, 6 ; Swt. 255, 11. Ðæt wé sceolan on ðisse sceortan tíde geearnian éce ræste, Blickl. Homl. 83, 2. Ðú ðám winterdagum selest scorte tída, Bt. 4 ; Fox 8, 4. Sceorta, Met. 4, 20. Nis nǽnig mon ðe wite hwæðer ðis þúsend sceole beón scyrtre ðe lengre. Blickl. Homl. 119, 6. Dagas ne synd náðor ne længran ne scyrtran ðonne hí æt fruman wǽran, Lchdm iii. 252, 19. Se mónaþ (February) is ealra scyrtost (scyrtst, MSS. P. M. : scirtst, MS. L.), 264, 8. Scyrtest, Anglia viii. 306, 8. (2) marking duration, (a) short-lived, brief :--Ðeáh se hlísa ðara foremǽrena monna hwílum lang sié, hé biþ ðeáh swíðe scort tó metanne wið ðone ðe nǽfre ne geendaþ. Bt. 18, 3 ; Fox 66, 18. Hú ne biþ simle ðæt lange yfel wyrse ðonne ðæt scorte, 38, 2 ; Fox 198, 12. Ðæt wuldor ðysses middangeardes is sceort and gewítende. Blickl. Homl. 65, 15. (b) not occupying much time :--Hwá ne wundraþ ðætte sume tunglu habbaþ scyrtran hwyrft (an orbit that requires less time to complete) ðoune sume habban. Bt. 39, 3 ; Fox 214, 18. Wé hit sæcgaþ eów on ða scortostan wísan we will tell it you in the briefest fashion, Homl. Skt. i. 4, 140. (c) as a grammatical term :--Seó forme geendung is on scortne a, Ælfc. Gr. 9, 1 ; Zup. 32, 17. Mid fíffétedum l scertrum brachycataleclico, Hpt. Gl. 409, 27. [O. H. Ger. scurz. Cf. Icel. skortr want.]