short shrift
A rushed sacrament of confession given to a prisoner who is to be executed very soonA rushed sacrament of confession given to a prisoner who is to be executed very soon.
» Tom begged Mary for a second chance, but she gave him short shrift.
Tom flehte Maria um eine zweite Chance an; diese ließ ihn jedoch eiskalt abblitzen.
Meaning
5 senses(countable, historical, uncountable)A rushed sacrament of confession given to a prisoner who is to be executed very soon.
(broadly, uncountable)Speedy execution, usually without any proper determination of guilt.
(broadly, countable)A short interval of relief or time.
(figuratively, uncountable)Sometimes preceded by the: a quick dismissal or rejection, especially one which is impolite and undertaken without proper consideration.
The bank gave me short shrift when I applied for a loan.
The proposal got short shrift.
(dated, figuratively, uncountable)Something dealt with or overcome quickly and without difficulty; something made short work of.
- a brief and unsympathetic rejection
Examples
1 sentencesTom begged Mary for a second chance, but she gave him short shrift.
deTom flehte Maria um eine zweite Chance an; diese ließ ihn jedoch eiskalt abblitzen. — Pfirsichbaeumchen
Translations
1 languagesOrigin
From short + shrift (“act of going to or hearing a religious confession; confession to a pFrom short + shrift (“act of going to or hearing a religious confession; confession to a priest”). Shrift is derived from Middle English shrift (“confession to a priest; act or instance of this; sacrament of penance; penance assigned by a priest; penitence, repentance; punishment for sin”) [and other forms], from Old English sċrift (“penance, shrift; something prescribed as punishment, penalty; one who passes sentence, a judge”), from sċrīfan (“of a priest: to prescribe absolution or penance; to pass judgment, ordain, prescribe; to appoint, decree”) (whence shrive), from Proto-Germanic *skrībaną (“to write”), from Latin scrībō (“to write”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *(s)kreybʰ- (“to scratch, tear”).
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Forms
plural: short shrifts| Singular | short shrift |
|---|---|
| Plural | short shrifts |
regular
Synonyms
1 synonyms- a brief and unsympathetic rejection:summary treatment
Lessons for this word
1 lessons- A1Countable and uncountable nouns — Because it can be uncountable