The term 'PARENS (6 letters)' is an abbreviation FOR the word 'parentheses', which are punctuation marks used to set off a phrase or clause within a sentence. They are often used to indicate additional information, such as a clarification or an afterthought. The term 'FOR SHORT' is used to indicate that the answer is an abbreviation of the full word. Therefore, the crossword solution FOR the term 'PARENS (6 letters), FOR SHORT' is '( )'.