curt

The rhythm section remained taut and rigid—live musicians mimicking the curt slap of hip-hop.

The pair had a curt handshake after Townsend clinched victory before Latvian Ostapenko made a comment at the net.

Yet he did, ending his meeting with the Russian leader with curt remarks, taking no questions from the press and offering no sense of a breakthrough toward peace in Ukraine.

Williams had often been curt and closed when speaking to the media, but spoke warmly and openly in her first pre-tournament news conference.

"Everyone was on edge constantly, he was very curt," a second ex-employee said.