短

短 (duǎn) is the Chinese adjective for 'short' — describing length or duration that is less than expected. Use 短 for physical length (短头发 'short hair,' 短裙 'short skirt'), distance (路很短 'the road is short'), and time spans (短时间 'a short time,' 短假 'a short holiday'). The opposite is 长 (cháng, 'long'). Unlike English, Chinese keeps height and length distinct: 短 means short in length, while 矮 (ǎi) means short in height (of a person or building).

Don't say 他很短 to mean 'he is short' — say 他很矮. 短 also extends to abstract uses: 短信 (duǎnxìn) 'SMS / short text message,' 短视 (duǎnshì) 'short-sighted (figuratively),' 短处 (duǎnchu)