stop short

idiom

: to stop or be stopped just before doing or reaching something

I had to slam on the brakes when the car in front of me stopped short.

He was about to say something, then stopped short.

—often + of

The boss said that she was unhappy with some employees, but she stopped short of naming which ones.

The running back was stopped short of the goal line.

Examples of stop short in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Why sacrifice thousands of lives, Palestinian and Israeli alike, but stop short of a definitive end to the war that would lay the groundwork for rebuilding Gaza? —

Nicholas Kristof, The Mercury News, 21 May 2024 In contrast, the current barrage of pro-Trump threats generally stop short of that red line. —

Peter Eisler, USA TODAY, 15 May 2024 Usually when streaming services detect fake listeners, the companies block future payments but stop short of pursuing legal action. —

Morgan Meaker, WIRED, 21 Mar. 2024 Biden will say the deal deserves scrutiny but will stop short of saying it should be blocked. —

Alan Murray, Fortune, 14 Mar. 2024 See all Example Sentences for stop short

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'stop short.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.