shortly

adverb

short·​ly ˈshȯrt-lē 

1

a

: in a few words : briefly

b

: in an abrupt manner

2

a

: in a short time

we will be there shortly

b

: at a short interval

shortly after sunset

Synonyms

• briefly
• compactly
• concisely
• crisply
• curtly
• elliptically
• laconically
• pithily
• succinctly
• summarily
• tersely

Examples of shortly in a Sentence

He left shortly after you did.

“I can't help you right now,” he said shortly.

Recent Examples on the Web

The Mountain Fire was reported shortly before 9 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 6, during a red-flag warning that covered much of coastal California. —Bay Area News Group, The Mercury News, 8 Nov. 2024

With 80% of the votes counted shortly before 11 p.m., Braun stood at 54% of the vote, compared to McCormick's 41% and Libertarian Donald Rainwater's 5%. —Kayla Dwyer, The Indianapolis Star, 6 Nov. 2024

In the days to come, election officials will verify the signatures on early ballots that arrived shortly before the election or were dropped off at polling places and drop boxes on Election Day. —Jeremy Duda, Axios, 4 Nov. 2024

Most of Oklahoma remains under a flood watch with a threat of heavy rain, and more than 12,000 utility customers did not have power shortly before 1 a.m. ET, according to Poweroutage.us. —Mirna Alsharif, NBC News, 4 Nov. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing shortly

• shortly after

Kids Definition

shortly

adverb

short·​ly ˈshȯrt-lē 

1

: in a few words : briefly

2

: in or within a short time : soon

will arrive shortly

shortly after sunset