curt

C2+ Topic:Describing Qualities

US /kɝt/ UK /kɜːt/ See IPA manual

Meanings

1

adj
rudely brief in speech or manner

Her curt reply made it clear she wished to end the conversation.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 adj · rudely brief in speech or... terse brusque abrupt short blunt brief

Opposites

verbose expansive courteous effusive

Word family

Derived forms curtlycurtness

Related forms curtail

Simplified etymology

Curt comes from Latin curtus “cut short, abridged” and originally meant “short or shortened.” By the 19th century, its use for speech had shifted from mere brevity to brevity perceived as rude. The same Latin source also gave English curtail.

Etymology

From Latin curtus ('shortened, cut off, mutilated'), from a Proto-Indo-European root *(s)ker- ('to cut').

curtus Latin *(s)ker- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Describing Qualities

External links

# curt

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** adj
**IPA (US):** /kɝt/
**IPA (UK):** /kɜːt/

## Meanings
1. rudely brief in speech or manner

## Examples
- Her curt reply made it clear she wished to end the conversation.

## Synonyms
- terse
- brusque
- abrupt
- short
- blunt
- brief

## Antonyms
- verbose
- expansive
- courteous
- effusive

## Derived Forms
- curtly
- curtness

## Related Forms
- curtail

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: curtus
- Root: *(s)ker-

## Etymology
From Latin curtus ('shortened, cut off, mutilated'), from a Proto-Indo-European root *(s)ker- ('to cut').

## AI Etymology
Curt comes from Latin curtus ('shortened, cut off, mutilated'), from a Proto-Indo-European root *(s)ker- ('to cut'). The etymological trail includes Latin curtus and Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker-. As an adjective, curt describes what is rudely brief in speech or manner. The same family is visible in derived forms such as curtly and curtness and related forms such as curtail.

## Topics
- Describing Qualities

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