short-termism

British

noun

the tendency to focus attention on short-term gains, often at the expense of long-term success or stability

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

But there’s surprisingly little evidence that corporate America is suffering from short-termism.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 27, 2026

Handing out stock has done little to curb most companies’ short-termism.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 14, 2026

Many of the other factors that contribute to corporate short-termism will continue.

From Barron's • Nov. 26, 2025

So often the grumble is one of short-termism, the quick win, the lack of strategic long term thought.

From BBC • Jun. 11, 2025

What we're in is a complete crisis of the whole basis of how we make decisions, and the short-termism and the irrationality and immorality of those decisions.

From Salon • Oct. 24, 2024

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023