take someone up short

verb

To check someone or give them a curt answer.

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Meanings

verbtake someone up short (third-person singular simple present takes someone up short, present participle taking someone up short, simple past took someone up short, past participle taken someone up short)

present singular third person takes someone up short · participle present taking someone up short · past took someone up short · participle past taken someone up short

  1. datedTo check someone or give them a curt answer.
Cite this entry
APA

take someone up short. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20someone%20up%20short

MLA

“take someone up short.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20someone%20up%20short. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “take someone up short,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20someone%20up%20short.

Source: take someone up short on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.