bring up short
bring up short · brings up short · brought up short · bringing up short
To arrest forward motionTo arrest (someone or something's) forward motion; to halt before a goal is reached.
Meaning
2 sensesTo arrest (someone or something's) forward motion; to halt before a goal is reached.
(figuratively)To startle or interrupt (someone), causing them to stop or reevaluate what they are doing.
Forms
brings up short, bringing up short, brought up short, brought up short| Base form | bring up short · to bring up short |
|---|---|
| 3rd person singular | brings up short |
| Present participle | bringing up short |
| Past simple | brought up short |
| Past participle | brought up short |
irregular · Lesson
Synonyms
1 synonymsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, irregular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.