short-term

short-term — adjective

1. designed to last, operate, or be needed for only a short time, not continuing fo

1.adjectiveB1
Definition

designed to last, operate, or be needed for only a short time, not continuing for long

Example

Hamza took a short-term job at a warehouse while he looked for a permanent position.

contrast: short-term vs permanent

The company hired short-term workers to help during the busy holiday season.

collocation: short-term workers

Common collocations
  • short-term job
  • short-term contract
  • short-term worker
  • short-term lease
  • short-term loan
  • short-term solution
  • short-term care
  • short-term basis
Synonyms
  • temporary

    more general; suggests the arrangement will end, but not necessarily that the duration itself is brief

  • brief

    focuses on the shortness of the period itself; less specific about planning or design

  • short-lived

    often describes things that end sooner than expected, sometimes with a negative tone

  • provisional

    formal; suggests something is temporary until a permanent solution is found

Antonyms
  • long-term

    the direct opposite; describes something lasting or designed for an extended period

  • permanent

    describes something that is not expected to end or change

Grammar Patterns

short-term + noun (job / contract / lease / loan / solution)

be + short-term (in nature)

Usage Note

Commonly contrasts with 'long-term'. Often modifies nouns related to employment (job, contract, worker, staff), housing (lease, rental), and financial arrangements (loan, borrowing). This sense describes the inherent duration of the thing itself — the job only lasts a few weeks, not indefinitely.

Common Mistakes

I have a short-term sickness.
I have a short illness.
For health issues, use 'short' rather than 'short-term'; 'short-term' typically describes planned arrangements, not unexpected conditions.
He needs a short-term break from work.
He needs a short break from work.
When the duration is brief but unplanned, 'short' is more natural than 'short-term.'

2. relating to the near future when thinking about results, goals, or effects, rath

2.adjectiveB2
Definition

relating to the near future when thinking about results, goals, or effects, rather than looking far ahead

Example

The team set several short-term goals for the first three months of the project.

collocation: short-term goals

Mei's short-term memory held the delivery number just long enough for her to dial.

collocation: short-term memory

Common collocations
  • short-term goal
  • short-term plan
  • short-term memory
  • short-term investment
  • short-term gain
  • short-term measure
  • short-term thinking
  • short-term strategy
  • short-term borrowing
Synonyms
  • near-term

    very close in meaning; slightly more formal and often used in business and policy contexts

  • immediate

    suggests urgency or the shortest possible time frame; stronger than 'short-term'

  • proximate

    formal and technical; used in academic or scientific writing about time horizons

Antonyms
  • long-term

    the direct opposite; focuses on extended time horizons for planning or results

  • distant

    describes a future point far away; less commonly used as a direct contrast

Grammar Patterns

short-term + noun (goal / plan / memory / investment / effect / gain)

Usage Note

Distinguish from sense 1 (SHORT DURATION): sense 2 focuses on the time horizon for planning or evaluating outcomes, rather than on how long the thing itself lasts. For example, 'short-term goals' may take months to achieve (the goal itself may not be brief), but the planning window is short. Common in business, finance, psychology (short-term memory), and policy contexts.

Common Mistakes

I borrowed money as a short-term solution.' (when meaning a quick fix that does not last long)
reserve for sense 1. 'A short-term loan' refers to the loan's brief duration (sense 1); 'short-term planning' refers to the near-future planning horizon (sense 2).
Short-term memory lasts a long time.
Short-term memory only holds information for seconds.
'Short-term memory' refers to the immediate retention of recent information, not to how long the memory function itself lasts.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: adjective/1

These four words all describe something that does not last long, but they differ in nuance and usage. 'Short-term' is the most specific — it usually describes something that is designed or planned to be brief, often with a known endpoint ('a short-term lease'). 'Temporary' is broader and suggests a substitute arrangement until a permanent situation is found ('temporary housing after the flood' — the housing may last months, but it is not the final solution). 'Brief' focuses purely on the shortness of time, without implications about planning or design ('a brief meeting', 'a brief moment of silence'). 'Short-lived' often carries a slightly negative or disappointing tone, as if something ended too soon ('their happiness was short-lived'). Use 'short-term' for planned arrangements with a fixed short duration; use 'temporary' when something is meant to fill a gap; use 'brief' for events or moments that simply do not last long; and use 'short-lived' when the brevity is regrettable or unexpected.

temporary ↗brief ↗short-livedshort-term ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Adverbs

Phrases

Prepositions

Etymology

Old EnglishOld FrenchLatinEnglish

The compound adjective 'short-term' was formed in English by combining the adjective 'short' (from Old English 'sceort', meaning 'not long, brief') with the noun 'term' (from Old French 'terme', ultimately from Latin 'terminus' meaning 'boundary, end, limit'). Originally used in financial and legal contexts to distinguish loans and contracts of brief duration from longer ones, the word gradually expanded in the 19th and 20th centuries into broader uses describing any limited time frame — from employment to memory to planning. The hyphenated form helps readers parse the two words as a single adjective unit before a noun.