Shorthand is a quick way of writing and uses signs to represent words or syllables. Shorthand is used by secretaries and journalists to write down what someone is saying.
Ben took notes in shorthand.
2. uncountable noun [oft aNOUN]
You can use shorthand to mean a quick or simple way of referring to something.
We've been friends so long we have a kind of shorthand. We don't really need to speak.
The fiction that 'he' is a neutral shorthand for 'he or she' is no longer acceptableto many.
shorthand in British English
(ˈʃɔːtˌhænd)
noun
a.
a system of rapid handwriting employing simple strokes and other symbols to represent words or phrases
b.
(as modifier)
a shorthand typist
shorthand in American English
(ˈʃɔrtˌhænd)
noun
1.
any system of speed writing using quickly made symbols to represent letters, words, and phrases
adjective
2.
using or written in shorthand
Examples of 'shorthand' in a sentence
shorthand
It reads like some sort of shorthand for something that was not unusual between the two officials.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
But it has become shorthand for all forms of internet abuse.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
The symbol becomes shorthand for the personality of the company.
Tom Cannon Basic Marketing. Principles and Practice (1986)
It has become a fashionable shorthand to signify just how bad our plight might be.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Many of his contemporaries used shorthand and codes in letters and diaries for economy and secrecy.
Christianity Today (2000)
An endorsement from the stars is a shorthand way of telling the story of who you are in politics.
Times, Sunday Times (2009)
Detroit used to be shorthand for what made American business great.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
And in imperial China clerks used a shorthand to record court proceedings.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
To specialists, it may be merely a shorthand term that expresses an agreed meaning succinctly.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Some turn away from all the places that have become shorthand for violence beyond measure, preferring not to know.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
So we will continue to use this convenient shorthand term for a way of eating that is "modified" with four main aims in view.
Shreeve, Dr Caroline M Lower Your Blood Pressure in 4 Easy Stages (1989)
A shared shorthand is used for sorting out differences, rather than the hours of negotiation.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
The problem is it has just become a lazy shorthand for film-makers; a metaphor for evil.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
In other languages
shorthand
British English: shorthand /ˈʃɔːtˌhænd/ NOUN
Shorthand is a quick way of writing which uses signs to represent words or syllables.
He took notes in shorthand.
American English: shorthand
Arabic: اِخْتِزال
Brazilian Portuguese: estenografia
Chinese: 速记
Croatian: stenografija
Czech: těsnopis
Danish: stenografi
Dutch: steno
European Spanish: taquigrafía
Finnish: pikakirjoitus
French: sténographie
German: Kurzschrift
Greek: στενογραφία
Italian: stenografia
Japanese: 速記
Korean: 속기
Norwegian: stenografi
Polish: stenografia
European Portuguese: estenografia
Romanian: stenografie
Russian: стенография
Latin American Spanish: taquigrafía
Swedish: stenografi
Thai: ชวเลข
Turkish: steno
Ukrainian: стенографія
Vietnamese: phép tốc ký
All related terms of 'shorthand'
shorthand notes
notes written in shorthand
shorthand notebook
a notebook used by a shorthand writer
shorthand typing
shorthand and typing
shorthand typist
A shorthand typist is a person who types and writes shorthand, usually in an office .
shorthand writer
a person trained to write in shorthand
stenographer
A stenographer is a person who types and writes shorthand, usually in an office.
stenographist
a person skilled in the use of shorthand and in typing