Curt
/kɜːrt/noun
Brief and abrupt in speech or manner.
Did you know?The word ultimately traces back to Latin *curtus*, meaning “shortened” or “mutilated,” a root that also gave English *curtail*—so the insult began as a literal cutting down.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*sker-
“to cut”
Latin
Latin
curtus
“shortened, cut short, defective”
Old French
Old French
court
“short, brief”
Middle English
English
curt
“brief, terse, abrupt”
Modern English
English
curt
“abruptly brief or rudely terse”
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