The word 'too-short' is a modern English compound adjective formed by combining the intensifying adverb 'too' with the adjective 'short'. 'Too' originates from the Old English adverb 'tō', which carried meanings of addition and excess, a sense preserved here. 'Short' descends from the Old English 'sceort', a common Germanic adjective describing lack of length. The compound logically builds its meaning by applying the concept of excess ('too') to the state of being 'short', resulting in the sense of being deficient or inadequately long. This transparent compounding follows a productive pattern in English for creating descriptive terms.

Structure: too (excessively) + short (not long) - too: From Old English 'tō', an adverb meaning 'in addition, also, excessively'. In this compound, it functions as an intensifier meaning 'excessively'. - short: From Old English 'sceort', an adjective meaning 'not long, brief'. It functions as the core descriptive element in the compound.