English

Proper noun

Shorty

1. A common nickname for a short person
2. (humorous) A nickname for a tall person

English

Alternative forms

• shortie
• shawty (hip-hop)

Noun

shorty ‎(plural shorties)

1. (informal) A short person.
2. (informal) A term of endearment for a child, younger sibling, shorter person, etc.
3. (slang, chiefly African American Vernacular) A child.
   • 1995, Vibe, page 102:

     "I think we loved 'The Bridge Is Over' more than anybody else," says Nas, who was just a shorty when he first heard the opening shot.

   • 1997, William Ayers, A kind and just parent: the children of juvenile court, Beacon Pr:

     Like one day when I was just a shorty my mother was drinking a beer and a policeman told her to pour it out. He was way too little to be saying that to my mother. No way I was going to let him put handcuffs on her.

   • 1997, Robert Jackson, The Darkside: Chronicling the Young Black Experience, Noble Press Incorporated:

     Ever since they introduced the world to Patrick Ewing and Michael Graham, Georgetown has been the Black school of choice for every shorty [...]

   • 2012, Julius B. Black, Married To The Game, AuthorHouse (ISBN 9781467060356), page 13:

     “Girl when I was just a shorty, some cats from New York came through putting down there work and muscling anybody too weak for the streets, but anyway they shot my oldest brother, who was alright with Ju and them.

4. (slang, chiefly African American Vernacular) An attractive young female, especially one who is sexually available.
   • 1999, Vibe:

     But seeing my boy on the cover of your magazine with three fine shorties made me think twice about the assumptions I've made.

   • 2006, Karen E. Quinones Miller, Uptown Dreams, Simon and Schuster (ISBN 9780743296083), page 38:

     “Yo, man,” Vincent looked up at Sharif. “How is it that you always have the fine shorties hanging out at your crib?”

   • 2015, Ashon Thadon, Unpunished: some deeds go that way, BookRix (ISBN 9783730986448):

     "It wasn't that fine ass shorty I saw in the car earlier?" Travis inquired.

5. (slang, chiefly African American Vernacular) A girlfriend.
   • 2003, Ebony, page 34:

     These are the things that separate a date from a fiancee, a shorty from a wife, a one-night stand from a lifetime commitment.

   • 2011, A.D. King, "Nola's Island": Vacation From Degradation, Trafford Publishing (ISBN 9781426994043), page 47:

     Demarco said pulling down his cap “Yeah, that's what I be hearing, my shorty told me how Shelly be bragging about the time ya'll had.”

   • 2012, Edd Mcnair, Turning Point, Urban Books (ISBN 9781622860203), page 42:

     My shorty called my baby moms, I'm in some ****, and all my real gear at shorty crib.

   • 2013, Jah King Entertainment, Time 2 Set It Off!: downloadable copy, Jah King Inc. (ISBN 9780989796200), page 90:

     It was my birthday weekend, and one of my shorties decided she wanted to take a playa to Amsterdam to celebrate, we took a sightseeing tour bus and we saw everything there was to see.

   • 2014, Antonio Harriston, Lust, Money, Envy, iUniverse (ISBN 9781491728499), page 169:

     I don't give a ****, what he wants from me, I'll give him anything to get my shorty back, I swear, he better not have hurt or touched my shorty, or I'm a kill 'em when I see'em.

Translations

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʃɔʁti/

Noun

shorty m ‎(plural shortys)

1. (pair of) boyshorts, French knickers