# Another Onion question: what does "shorty" mean exactly? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 3, 2004, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297 "2004-03-03T13:55:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/1 "2004-03-03T13:55:30Z")
Another Q inspired by this week’s edition of The Onion. I have heard the slang term “shorty” used before, and I gather it means woman or girlfriend. But is there more to the meaning than this? [This](http://www.theonion.com/wdyt/) is the page I’m looking at. ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 1:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/2 "2004-03-03T13:57:25Z")
Kid…child…etc ---
**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/3 "2004-03-03T14:04:42Z")
Wait, you said you knew it meant girlfriend and that’s how he used it in the article…??? But a specific type of girl would be a nice body…a hottie. But I have heard it reserved for kids, or younger hotties. ---
**Author:** ![xvxdarkknightxvx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/34f0e0/32.png) [@xvxdarkknightxvx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xvxdarkknightxvx)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/4 "2004-03-03T14:08:12Z")
It can mean anything ranging from a girlfriend, female aquaintence, wife, daughter, son, or child. From 50 Cent’s _Get Rich or Die Tryin’_'s **Wanksta** : > [@](#): > > Shorty she so fine, I gotta make her mine > A ass like dat gotta be one of a kind And from Eminem’s _8 Mile_’s **Love Me** : > [@](#): > > I ain’t gonna front, I thought R Kelly was the shit > let me find out, he fuckin’ ‘round with bow wow’s bitch > niggaz eatin popcorn, right rewinding and the tape > now shorty’s momma in the precinct, hollerin’ rape These songs really exemplify the diversity of the word. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/5 "2004-03-03T14:25:54Z")
Yes, I knew it meant “girlfriend”, but I was wondering if there was some nuance I was missing. The guy just saying “I wanted people to know I was banging a girl as recently as a year ago” is kind of funny, I guess, but I just wondered if he meant any particular type of girl. A young, hot one, I guess… Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![BF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b5ac83/32.png) [@BF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BF)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/6 "2004-03-03T14:42:37Z")
The gospel according to [Herbert Kornfeld](http://www.theonion.com/onion3609/cash_room_shortie.html). ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/7 "2004-03-03T16:01:44Z")
Shorty may have evolved into something else. As it was originally used it meant a short-time girlfriend, a one night stand or someone on the side. This is how it was used when I first heard it around the end of 2001. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/8 "2004-03-03T16:13:03Z")
(I just want to point out that it’s not that I’m not down with the homiez on tha street… just that I’m English 😉 ) ---
**Author:** ![WILLASS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/54ee81/32.png) [@WILLASS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WILLASS)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/9 "2004-03-03T20:59:55Z")
I took it to mean he had a young, hot piece ‘o’ ass and that he wanted to boast about it… ---
**Author:** ![Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/qadgop_the_mercotan/32/83_2.png) [@Qadgop\_the\_Mercotan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qadgop_the_Mercotan)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/10 "2004-03-03T23:21:55Z")
Wait until my uncle, Ken “Shorty” the Mercotan hears about this! I never associated that nickname with anything other than the idea that the person was short. Any etymological relationship between “short” and “shorn”? ---
**Author:** ![liirogue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/dbc845/32.png) [@liirogue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/liirogue)\ **Post date:** [March 3, 2004, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/another-onion-question-what-does-shorty-mean-exactly/232297/11 "2004-03-03T23:24:57Z")
> [@Qadgop the Mercotan](#): > > Wait until my uncle, Ken “Shorty” the Mercotan hears about this! > > I never associated that nickname with anything other than the idea that the person was short. > > Any etymological relationship between “short” and “shorn”? :eek: :eek: My husband calls me “shorty” all the time too, and in public sometimes. I hope they think like you, **Qadgop** , 'cause that’s what I thought it meant too!