short in something—(also: short on something ) not having enough of smth.:
- Though I was at that time rich in fame—for my book ran like wildfire—yet I was very short in money.
short of something—
1. = short in something:
- Elizabeth, always short of money, railed against the required outlay.
2. not fully amounting to smth.:
- If the court does not deem it appropriate to inflict punishment, it shall adopt other measures short of punishment.
3. except for smth.:
- He will do anything short of murder to achieve his ends.
Note: The expression does not correlate in meaning with the phrase short for something—used of the short version of a name:
- “B-girls?” I repeated, “What are they?” “That’s just short for bar girls.”