When to use corto and bajo ?

Question

I was hoping that someone could explain to me the difference between corto and bajo ?Thanking you in advance .

Answer 1

Mi vestido es demasiado corto . - My dress is too short

Esa puerta es demasido baja --That doorway is too low

Answer 2

Usually native speakers dont call people "cortos" if they are short, but "bajos".

Here some examples:

El camino es corto. (longitud)

Ese hombre es bajo. (altura)

La vida es corta.

La montaña es baja.

Also the word "bajo" is a preposition that means under and below (correct me if im wrong)

Bajo el cielo.

Bajo la tierra.

Bajo la sombra del arbol bajo(altura) etc.

If you add an accent mark, the word now becomes into a verb in perfect preterite.

here another example of bajo (down)

Bajo(verbo) desde el árbol bajo(altura), desde donde el hombre bajo(altura) bajó(verbo) para descansar bajo(prep) la sombra de otro árbol.

espero te libre de algunas dudas y no te complique más la vida. saludos

Answer 3

There probably is some variation as noted here:

http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=1467521

Actually depending in the region you are, different words can be used for the same purpose. But, at least here, it's kind of weird hear the word "corto" to refer about how tall a person is. Of course you can hear it sometimes but, it doesn't mean that it's the most common expression.

But typically I think of corto in the sense of legnth, and bajo in the sense of height/altitude.

Like they say in that same thread:

"Largo" is the opposite of 'corto', and "alto" of 'bajo.'

I think the answers so far fall in that rule.

Answer 4

I have seen in the book "El Viejo Y El Mar" the word "bajo" to describe a short man. In an audio course I've taken, "corto" was used to describe a book of short stories - "cuentos cortos."

So basically, I can't see a consistent rule here. Perhaps someone more experienced can help.