Shortweight

Part of speech: noun, adjective

Definitions

1. Weighing less than the amount that was stated or promised, as when a seller gives a customer goods that fall short of the labelled quantity
2. Describing goods or a load that fails to reach the weight it should have, usually because a seller or carrier has cheated the buyer
3. Having a measured mass below the declared or agreed amount, so that the buyer receives less than the price implies

Etymology: The "short" here carries the sense of falling below what is due or expected, the same sense behind being "short of cash." Joined to "weight," the compound describes a quantity that comes up short of what was promised, and the word is used as a noun for the deficit and as a verb for the act of delivering it. Its parts are both native English. "Weight" descends from Old English "gewiht," and "short" from Old English "sceort," so the word is built entirely from older English material rather than borrowed from another language. Its meaning is almost literal: the scale or measure reads less than it should.

Synonyms: underweight, short measure

Antonyms: overweight