short of

short of idiom
  1. Having an inadequate supply of, as in We're short of cash right now. [Late 1600s] Also see fall short of.
  2. Less than, inferior to, as in Nothing short of her best effort was needed to make the team. [Mid-1500s]
  3. Other than, without resorting to, as in Short of yelling, I had no other way of getting his attention.
  4. See stop short, def. 3.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

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