nitty-gritty

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Related to nitty-gritty: Nitty Gritty Dirt Band

nit·ty-grit·ty

(nĭt′ē-grĭt′ē)

n. Informal

The specific or practical details; the heart of a matter.

[Origin unknown.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

nitty-gritty

(ˈnɪtɪˈɡrɪtɪ)

the nitty-gritty informal the basic facts of a matter, situation, etc; the core

[C20: perhaps rhyming compound formed from grit]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

nit′ty-grit′ty

n., pl. -grit•ties.

the essential substance or details of a matter; crux: Let's get down to the nitty-gritty; the nitty-gritties of the negotiations.

[1955–60, Amer.; rhyming compound of uncertain orig.]

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Noun

nitty-gritty - the choicest or most essential or most vital part of some idea or experience; "the gist of the prosecutor's argument"; "the heart and soul of the Republican Party"; "the nub of the story"

essence, heart and soul, inwardness, gist, pith, substance, meat, nub, kernel, sum, core, marrow, heart, center, centre

cognitive content, mental object, content - the sum or range of what has been perceived, discovered, or learned

bare bones - (plural) the most basic facts or elements; "he told us only the bare bones of the story"

hypostasis - (metaphysics) essential nature or underlying reality

haecceity, quiddity - the essence that makes something the kind of thing it is and makes it different from any other

quintessence - the purest and most concentrated essence of something

stuff - a critically important or characteristic component; "suspense is the very stuff of narrative"

nitty-gritty

noun basics, facts, reality, essentials, core, fundamentals, substance, essence, bottom line, crux, gist, nuts and bolts, heart of the matter, ins and outs, brass tacks (informal) They are more concerned with matters of principle than with the nitty-gritty of everyday politics.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

Translations

nitty-gritty

[ˌnɪtɪgrɪtɪ] N the nitty-gritty → lo esencial, el meollo
to get down to the nitty-gritty → ir al grano

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

nitty-gritty

[ˌnɪtiˈgrɪti] n
to get down to the nitty-gritty → en venir au fond du problème
the nitty-gritty of everyday politics → la dure réalité de la politique au quotidien

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

nitty-gritty

n (inf) to get down to the nitty-gritty → zur Sache kommen; the nitty-gritty of everyday life/of politics → die wahre Realität des alltäglichen Lebens/der Politik

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

nitty-gritty

[ˈnɪtɪˈgrɪtɪ] n (fam) to get down to the nitty-gritty → venire al sodo

Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

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Several paragraphs later was the nitty-gritty: 230 police staff posts to go, senior roles to be cut back, area commands to be merged, buildings to be closed.