come up short

1) To exert much effort but still fail miserably
2) Fall short of a goal
3) To get busted, caught red handed

1) It took him years to save all that money only to get it all stolen. That's what he gets for hiding all that cash in his house instead of putting it in the back. What a way to come up short!

2) He was banging this married chick. They were at her house fucking and her husband came home. Her husband was a cop! That guy came up short.

come up short by NLL November 11, 2005