Kort

Kort is a term that appears in several Germanic languages with related meanings tied to length and to portable objects called cards. In Dutch, kort is primarily an adjective meaning short or brief; it is used in phrases such as een kort verhaal (a short story) or kort geleden (recently). In Dutch it does not denote a card.

In Norwegian, Danish and Swedish, kort functions both as a noun meaning “card” and as an adjective meaning “short.” It occurs in compounds such as kreditkort or kredittkort (credit card) and visitkort (business card). As an adjective it appears in expressions such as kort tid (short time) or kortere periode (shorter period). The dual usage reflects a common Germanic semantic link between brevity and portable objects.

The word belongs to the Germanic language family, with cognates across related languages. Beyond everyday language, kort may also appear as a surname or part of place names in some regions, though such uses are not tied to a single meaning.