1. Abruptly; quickly: stop short. 2. In a rude or curt manner. 3. At a point before a given boundary, limit, or goal: a missile that landed short of the target. 4. At a disadvantage: We were caught short by the sudden storm.
SHORT meaning: 1 : extending a small distance from one end to the other end having little length not long; 2 : not great in distance