get the short end

== English == === Alternative forms === short end === Etymology === Unknown. Attested since the 1500s, suggested by one theory to be a minced oath of shit end of the stick, as an 1840s cite uses crappy, but this theory is unlikely. Possibly also derived from a previous literal meaning, as wrong end of the stick is even older, though the precise literal meaning is unclear. === Pronunciation === === Noun === short end of the stick (plural short ends of the stick) (idiomatic) A situation, opportunity, or outcome which is less favorable than situations, opportunities, or outcomes experienced by or available to others. Near-synonyms: shitty stick; shortest straw; raw deal 1963 April, Ralph E. Lapp, "The Strategy of Overkill," Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, p. 10 (Google preview): Soviet emphasis on high-yield weapons might give them a megaton surplus. . . . We might then be on the short end of the stick. ==== Translations ==== === See also === wrong end of the stick short straw === References === “short end of the stick”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.