as in to circumvent
to avoid having to comply with (something) especially through cleverness
are you sure there's no way to shortcut the entrance requirements?
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Recent Examples of shortcut
PC Magazine, 18 Nov. 2025
Quality of life improvements that make the game more manageable in a modern sense can often shortcut elements that were there to increase tension or complexity.
—Ollie Barder, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 28 Jan. 2026
The plot concerns a med student named Hana (Midori Francis) who finds out that eating human ash is a shortcut to weight loss.
—William Earl, Variety, 23 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shortcut
Verb
Apple now plans to open that shortcut to third-party assistants, but only in Japan.
—PC Magazine, 18 Nov. 2025
Quality of life improvements that make the game more manageable in a modern sense can often shortcut elements that were there to increase tension or complexity.
—Ollie Barder, Forbes.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Noun
Just like in every other industry, AI is being hungrily dropped in as a shortcut to spike capital.
—Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 28 Jan. 2026
The plot concerns a med student named Hana (Midori Francis) who finds out that eating human ash is a shortcut to weight loss.
—William Earl, Variety, 23 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for shortcut
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shortcut
Verb
-
Moscow is at the mercy of an American president who circumvents traditional channels of power and obliterates the constraints that once regulated their use.—
Alan Cullison,
The Atlantic,
13 Feb. 2026
-
Republican state lawmakers opposed the measure, saying the Legislature was circumventing its process and abandoning transparency and accountability in order to funnel tax dollars to a political ally.—
Andrew Graham,
Sacbee.com,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
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In Tennessee, for example, the eligibility cutoff in pregnancy is more than double the income threshold for some other residents.—
Blake Farmer,
Miami Herald,
10 Feb. 2026
-
The commercials come off like cutoff jeans and a tank top at a formal affair.—
Brian Steinberg,
Variety,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The goal was to bypass political debate and constitutional constraints by anchoring Castro’s repressive agenda in the authority of Washington's security apparatus.—
Evandro Cruz Silva,
The Dial,
10 Feb. 2026
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Trains were bypassing the stop in both directions while police tried to piece together what unfolded.—
Adi Guajardo,
CBS News,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
This week, Google went the bond route.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
11 Feb. 2026
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The emerging pattern includes architectures that route tasks to the simplest effective model, escalate only when necessary, and continuously balance accuracy with speed and cost.—
Abhas Ricky,
Fortune,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Avian influenza continues to cause significant mortality in wild birds, prompting the Arkansas Department of Agriculture to recommend avoiding contact with wild birds.—
Bryan Hendricks,
Arkansas Online,
15 Feb. 2026
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During warmer months, when the path is crowded with tourists in leisure mode, anyone who walks with a purpose should avoid the Bridge at all costs.—
Katie James Watkinson,
Condé Nast Traveler,
15 Feb. 2026
Noun
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At peak periods, the lookout has drawn thousands of people a day, overwhelming narrow access roads and limited parking facilities.—
Trista Kurniawan,
CNN Money,
11 Feb. 2026
-
The Hogs never trailed in their second straight road win.—
Matt Byrne,
Arkansas Online,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Somehow their petition—miraculously evading Confederate interception and traveling, via the Bahamas, to Washington—arrived on the Navy secretary’s desk, though they likely weren’t released until the end of the war.—
Drew Gilpin Faust,
The Atlantic,
8 Feb. 2026
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Edwards, who trains such police departments as the New York Police Department on drone threat mitigation, points to fiber-optic drones that can evade radio frequency detection systems as a particular concern.—
Anna Schecter,
CBS News,
7 Feb. 2026
Noun
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In a first-of-its-kind event for NASCAR, all three national series will travel to Southern California and race on the streets of Naval Base Coronado, the island facility across the bay from downtown San Diego.—
Jeff Gluck,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
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Oval holes in the walls once held lamps to light the street after dark.—
Maureen O'Hare,
CNN Money,
9 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Shortcut.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shortcut. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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