A History of Short Words

From the New York Times Crossword Puzzle

ALLEY

Tue, 29 Aug '23
Bowling locale
Fri, 30 Jun '23
Where you can hear pins drop
Sat, 27 May '23
Where to get the ball rolling, maybe
Tue, 5 Apr '22
___ cat
Mon, 14 Mar '22
Narrow street
Mon, 18 Jan '21
What the back of a store might open onto