short fuse

noun

a quick temper: A person with a short fuse has to be handled diplomatically.

Origin:
1965–70

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Collins

World English Dictionary

short fuse

—n
	informal a quick temper

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Relevant Questions

How Short Is Your Fuse?

00:10

Short fuse is always a great word to know.

So is callithumpian. Does it mean:

a children's mummer's parade, as on the Fourth of July, with prizes for the best costumes.

a scrap or morsel of food left at a meal.

LEARN MORE UNUSUAL WORDS WITH WORD DYNAMO...

Slang Dictionary

short fuse definition

n.
a quick temper. : I knew she'd blow. She's got a short fuse.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Example sentences

We've got a short fuse, so those of you who are interested in working on this,

let me know at your earliest convenience.

You're known for having a short fuse, according to the article.

Congestion for a motorist is often the match that lights an already short fuse.

The record is punctuated with the judge's impatience and short fuse in the

proceeding below.

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Matching Quote

"The fairytale is irresponsible; it is frankly imaginary, and its purpose is to gratify wishes, "as a dream doth flatter." It heroes and heroines, though of delightfully high station, wealth, beauty, etc., are simply individuals; "certain prince," "a lovely princess." The end of the story is always satisfying, though by no means always moral; the hero's heroism may be slyness or luck quite as readily as integrity or valor. The theme is generally the triumph of an unfortunate one—an enchanted maiden, a youngest son, a poor Cinderella, an alleged fool—over his or her superiors.... In short, the fairytale is a form of "wishful thinking," and the Freudian analysis of it fully explains why it is perennially attractive, yet never believed by adults even in the telling. Myth, on the other hand, whether literally believed or not, is taken with religious seriousness, either as a historic fact or as a "mystic" truth. Its typical theme is tragic, not utopian; and its personages tend to fuse into stable personalities of supernatural character."

-Susanne K. Langer