kurfristige

Kurzfristige is an adjective in the German language meaning “short-term” or relating to a brief time horizon. It is formed from kurz (short) and Frist (deadline, period) and is used to describe nouns that denote a near-term duration, goal, contract, or plan. The attributive form ends with -e before common singular nouns and -en in plural; for example: die kurzfristige Verbindlichkeit, der kurzfristige Vertrag, das kurzfristige Ziel, die kurzfristigen Verbindlichkeiten.

Common contexts for kurz­fristige include finance, accounting, business planning and project management. In economics and accounting, the term is used to distinguish resources or obligations that are expected to be realized or settled within a short period, typically one year or the operating cycle. Phrases frequently encountered are kurzfristige Vermögenswerte (current assets) and kurzfristige Verbindlichkeiten (current liabilities). In planning and management, kurz­fristige Ziele (short-term goals) or kurzfristige Maßnahmen (short-term measures) are contrasted with mittelfristig (mid-term) and langfristig (long-term) horizons.

Usage notes: kurzfr­istig is the adverbial form, used to modify verbs or adjectives (e.g., Zahlungen sind kurzfristig fällig). The bare noun usage is uncommon; the term most often appears as an attributive adjective before a noun or in compound noun phrases. While the standard spelling in German includes a z in “kurzfristig,” the spelling without the z is considered a common misspelling in some regions.