short shrift

American  

noun

1. little attention or consideration in dealing with a person or matter.

   She'll give short shrift to such a weak argument.

2. a brief time for confession or absolution given to a condemned prisoner before their execution.

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short shrift British  

noun

1. brief and unsympathetic treatment

2. (formerly) a brief period allowed to a condemned prisoner to make confession

3. to dispose of quickly and unsympathetically

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Etymology

Origin of short shrift

First recorded in 1585–95

Example Sentences

Along the way, Cass gives short shrift to the many useful things that the financial industry does that are not a grift.

From The Wall Street Journal

This gives short shrift to the foundational curriculum in genetics, biochemistry, biostatistics and epidemiology.

From The Wall Street Journal

The result was “a sea change in the economics of the malpractice plaintiffs’ bar,” Rand found, with cases where the judgment cap would cut too deeply into attorney fees getting short shrift.

From Los Angeles Times

Mr. Brown gives short shrift to Roosevelt’s unparalleled record on the conservation of public land.

From The Wall Street Journal

Known for not suffering fools gladly while on air and giving some callers short shrift, he was once satirised in Private Eye.

From BBC