Unlike people with long sightedness (hyperopia), people with short sightedness (myopia) typically have an eye that is slightly longer (front to back) or a cornea that is steeper than normal.

This means that when the light passes from the cornea through the lens of the eye, the light rays converge incorrectly and the image becomes out of focus on the retina.

In this case, clear sight is only possible at short distances and distant objects generally appear blurry.

Short sightedness can be treated with laser eye surgery.