a route that is shorter than the usual one
a means of saving time or effort
First recorded in 1560–70
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The legislators, however, said they will fight Newsom’s attempt to short-cut the established process.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2025
"You can't really short-cut that, you build trust and relationships over time, as you know, But every day's been exciting, I literally wake up with excitement every day."
From BBC ● Feb. 19, 2025
Let’s try the Expedia plug-in as a short-cut.
From New York Times ● Jun. 16, 2023
I wouldn't recommend serving with a short-cut pasta, though.
From Salon ● Nov. 27, 2022
“There be things that’s evil in these woods tonight. I seed evil apassin’ my place a while ago, cornin’ in from the short-cut road to town and reelin’ in the saddle.
From "Across Five Aprils" by Irene Hunt
A macro can be thought of as a short cut.
From BBC ● Jan. 8, 2026
Taking a short cut on the long walk to school, she stumbles on a pond in a wooded area.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 31, 2025
“There are times when people react and think that government actions can be a short cut to getting things done,” he said.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 8, 2023
In Season 1, Hopper realizes he's been chasing the wrong kid the entire time — both Will and El had short cut hair and witness descriptions of either kid could easily describe the other.
From Salon ● Jul. 5, 2022
‘We were both right! The short cut has gone crooked already; but we got under cover only just in time. You’ve got sharp ears, Sam: can you hear anything coming?’
From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien
So you can do it my short-cutting home cook's way, just know that when you do, a small part of a hard-working pastry chef's soul will die along with your sloppy swirls.
From Salon ● Sep. 19, 2023
It’s full of technologists who grow crops in buildings instead of outdoors, short-cutting the need to prematurely harvest produce for a bumpy ride often thousands of miles to consumers in colder climes.
From Washington Times ● May 10, 2018
"The process will continue for some months. The United States won't be short-cutting their security or health checks," said Turnbull.
From Reuters ● Nov. 13, 2016
And they warn that short-cutting the traditional clinical-trial process could make it more difficult to tell whether GM604 really works.
From Washington Post ● Apr. 3, 2015
Amid the confusion, irregular trodden paths led, short-cutting, toward the clattering, grinding munition plants.
From The Sturdy Oak A composite Novel of American Politics by fourteen American authors by Jordan, Elizabeth Garver
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
