Question

when i behold the violet past prime,
and sable curls all silvered oer with white;
when lofty trees i see barren of leaves
which erst from heat did canopy the herd,
and summers green all girded up in sheaves
borne on the bier with white and bristly beard,
then of thy beauty do i question make,
that thou among the wastes of time must go,
since sweets and beauties do themselves forsake
and die as fast as they see others grow;
and nothing gainst times scythe can make defence
save breed, to brave him when he takes thee hence.

which is not a characteristic of a sonnet?
it has three quatrains and one rhyming couplet.
the poem has fourteen lines.
it is written in iambic pentameter.
the title is only a few words long.

Explanation:

A sonnet is defined by formal poetic structures: the English (Shakespearean) sonnet has 14 lines, structured as 3 quatrains plus a rhyming couplet, and is typically written in iambic pentameter. There is no requirement for a sonnet to have a short title; some sonnets have no title, or longer descriptive titles, so this is not a defining characteristic.

Answer:

The title is only a few words long.