VocabauraVOCABAURA

shortlist

verb · noun

Simple meaning

A list of applicants winnowed from a longer list who have been deemed suitable and from which the successful person will be chosen.

Pronunciation

Say it like this:

shawrtlist

Say the bold part a little louder.

US device voice
IPA pronunciation (US)

ˈʃɔɹtlɪst

This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.

IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.

Word Review

Definition

Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.

verb

  1. Put someone or something on a short list

  2. To place something on a short list.

noun

  1. A list of applicants winnowed from a longer list who have been deemed suitable and from which the successful person will be chosen

  2. A list of candidates selected from a longer list, and from which one or more successful candidates are in turn selected.

Word Aura™

How this word commonly comes across.

Aura for this meaning

This meaning: Put someone or something on a short list

Used this way, shortlist is a reasonably familiar word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. It usually sounds natural in a wide range of settings.

Emotional tone
Neutral
Formality
Neutral
Intensity
Not strongly marked
How common
Moderately common
Connotation
No strong connotation
Usage feel
Neutral and straightforward

Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.

More ways to use shortlist

  • “After many interviews, we created a shortlist of the top three candidates.”noun

Share your sentence

Write your own example sentence using “shortlist”. We review each one before it appears.

Use This Word

See how this word sounds in a real sentence.

Ask Vocabaura

Understand the word your way.

What Does It Mean Here?

Words can change meaning depending on context.

Use it yourself

Knowing “shortlist” starts when you use it. Pick a next step, all free.

Know the meaning? Practice using it in a real situation, free, no credits.

Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.