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shortly

Li'l Bull

Senior Member
Spanish (Spain)
Hi, native speakers of English!

Context: you are the head of a department in your company and you need to tell the workers that they should have a report ready in the next few days/weeks; you don't want to sound too pushy/bossy; there's no actual deadline, you're just reminding them.

My try: "It would be a good idea for you to have the document ready shortly."

Is "shortly" suitable here?

Thank you in advance.
Thank you, Newt. 👁 Smile :)


Is "shortly" incorrect?

What would the workers (i.e. if you were one of them) understand by "shortly"? Would they interpret the word as very pushy, quite pushy or mildly pushy?
Thank you, Newt. 👁 Smile :)


Is "shortly" incorrect?

What would the workers (i.e. if you were one of them) understand by "shortly"? Would they interpret the word as very pushy, quite pushy or mildly pushy?

"Shortly" would be correct, but it might be regarded as a bit curt in this case. In other contexts it would be more neutral.
My try: "It would be a good idea for you to have the document ready shortly."

Is "shortly" suitable here?
I'd say it very much depends on the worker, LB. I'd consider all this extremely vague and non-committal: it could mean 'in two days', it could mean 'in two weeks', it could mean 'if or when you can be bothered'. And the whole thing doesn't sound in the least bit urgent ... or even important.
If I was in the boss' shoes I'd say something like: Don't forget: the report needs to be finished in the next couple of weeks.
it could mean 'if or when you can be bothered'.

👁 Big Grin :D
- Thanks, ewie.

I guess I'm not cut out to be a boss. 👁 Smile :)


What about this other context?: Your dad's computer is very old and playing up. You say to him: "It would be a good idea for you to get a new one shortly". I don't know, maybe just "soon" is fine (i.e. instead of "shortly") as The Newt suggested?
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The point is that "shortly" expresses the sense of short = curt.

In the very near future.

I'd say it very much depends on the worker, LB. I'd consider all this extremely vague and non-committal: it could mean 'in two days', it could mean 'in two weeks', it could mean 'if or when you can be bothered'. And the whole thing doesn't sound in the least bit urgent ... or even important.
If I was in the boss' shoes I'd say something like: Don't forget: the report needs to be finished in the next couple of weeks.

I don't think two weeks would apply.
The point is that "shortly" expresses the sense of short = curt.
👁 Confused :confused:
👁 Confused :confused:
👁 Confused :confused:
I don't follow you at all, RG👁 Frown :(

I don't think two weeks would apply.
It would for me: it just means 'some time in the nearish future' to me: it could be two minutes or two weeks, if coupled with It would be a good idea if ... which sounds like a take-it-or-leave-it general suggestion, not much better than "Someone might like to finish the report some time in the nearish future, if they can be bothered. If they can't, it doesn't matter."
If I were the people I'd be wondering what exactly you meant by 'shortly' and probably feeling annoyed. In our house, it's what we say when we mean 'I'll do it when I feel like it', which really means I can't be bothered ever. It's what my husband says when I ask him to mend something.
It's like saying 'I'll think about it' to kids, or my husband's phrase when he hasn't really liked some food and is offered more of the dish. He says, 'I'll have it for breakfast/ tomorrow's lunch'.
Thank you all guys.

Although you all seem in disagreement as to the nuances of the tricky little word, I feel you all agree that "shortly" doesn't quite work in my example. That's why I've decided to forget about it.

Now I'm considering "in the next few days" and "over the next few days" instead (along the lines of what ewie suggested). Which is better in my example? (I'd prefer the one that indicates a longer period of time; for some reason "over..." sounds longer than "in..." to me but I'm probably wrong). By the way, I've just read other threads but I'm not quite clear what you mean by "a few days": in my context, does it mean 3-4 days at the most, or could it mean a little longer, say, 7 days?
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"To answer someone shortly" means to answer them curtly, dismissively (as in H G's "I'll do it when I feel like it [or even more so, "...when I'm good and ready."]). In English, it's considered borderline rude to answer only with "Yes;" or "No"", for example; "He gave me a short answer." = "He answered me shortly." means "He brushed me off." rather than "He answered me in a few words/...succinctly." (which is what we'd be more likely to say in this case)" - is that what you were thinking of, L B? In the context of time, from the above, I'd go with mentioning the deadline, "by Friday", etc. It'd probably be best for all concerned to be specific.
"To answer someone shortly" means to answer them curtly, dismissively (as in H G's "I'll do it when I feel like it [or even more so, "...when I'm good and ready."]). In English, it's considered borderline rude to answer only with "Yes;" or "No"", for example; "He gave me a short answer." = "He answered me shortly." means "He brushed me off." rather than "He answered me in a few words/...succinctly." (which is what we'd be more likely to say in this case)" - is that what you were thinking of, L B? In the context of time, from the above, I'd go with mentioning the deadline, "by Friday", etc. It'd probably be best for all concerned to be specific.

I think Li'l made the context clear ain'tt: it isn't about being curt with someone. It's about what we mean if we ask someone to have something ready "shortly". I agree with others that it's best to make your expectations perfectly clear, to avoid misunderstandings: "This has to be done by tomorrow please".
Could someone please tell me if the example in my second context (in post #6, i.e. "It would be a good idea for you to get a new computer shortly") is any better?
I'd prefer "soon" in that example. Shortly after typing that I wondered if soon could always substitute for "shortly" and I concluded that it could - if the word was being used with its meaning of "in a short time". Now, soon is just as vague, in terms of absolute time, as "shortly" but it seems clearer👁 Eek! :eek:

Cross posted - I must have hit enter shortly after aint't👁 Big Grin :D


Added: I think I am more familiar with "shortly" (before or after) as part of a narrative (like my cross-posted comment). The other context is in a busy shop or restsurant, where the waiter says "I'll be with you shortly" but I've never seen it in the context of giving an order/suggestion to some as to how they should execute it.
Could someone please tell me if the example in my second context (in post #6, i.e. "It would be a good idea for you to get a new computer shortly") is any better?
In case I (and others) haven't made it plain enough, LB, my problem is as much with It would be a good idea if ... as much as shortly (or soon or anything else).
If someone said to me It would be a good idea if you lost some weight soon, my answer would be "Yes, that be a good idea, wouldn't it?" Then I'd sit down and have another cake, completely ignoring their tentative suggestion👁 Cool :cool:
Pass me a cake, too, ewie. I am going on a diet, shortly. It does have the ring of never-never about it to me.

I might get a new computer soon, or shortly, they both sound OK. I think context has a lot to do with it. People are maybe more likely to talk about diets they never start, than saying they will buy new hardware that they do not buy. Maybe.

The thing about shortly meaning curt is a complete red-herring in this context, by the way, L'il Bull, if you were still puzzling over that.
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