to get down to brass tacks
3
7.4
- idiom
- Informal
:
ir al grano
- Before we finalize our plan, let's get down to brass tacks and discuss the budget.
- Let's get down to brass tacks
But let's get down to brass tacks, as it were.
- But let's get down to brass tacks, as it were.
- You did not hear me say, by the way, so for so let's let's get down to brass tacks.
- Do it simply because they don't want to have to get down to brass tacks of doing some hard work.
Examples
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Let's get down to brass tacks.
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Listen, let's get down to brass tacks here.
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So I suggest we get down to brass tacks.
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We're getting down to brass tacks.
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Let us get down to brass tacks.
Academic text (2000) -
Okay, so, uh, let's get down to brass tacks here.
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All right, let's get down to brass tacks, OK?
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Look, let's get down to brass tacks.
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Now, let's get down to brass tacks.
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So let's get down to brass tacks, shall we?
Synonyms
126
3.1
Talk about the most important part without extra details
2
6.6
To start dealing with the most important details
1
6.5
To talk about the exact parts of a plan to reach an agreement
Start talking about the most important details of a topic
To deal with the most basic problems in a situation
Focus immediately on the most important information without extra details
To look closely at the small parts of a plan or report to understand it
How Direct
- Informal
3
7.4
- Informal
126
3.1
∞
1.6
- Informal
17
5.6
Surface Forms
Morphology
get + down + to + brass + tacks
Although the component 'get down to' might suggest focusing attention, the core phrase 'brass tacks' is an idiomatic metaphor whose sense 'the basic or most important details' is not predictable from the literal words 'brass' (a metal) and 'tacks' (small nails). The overall meaning is language-specific and historically opaque, so a B1 learner who only knows the constituent meanings would not reliably infer the idiomatic sense.
Etymology
The idiom get down to brass tacks may come from old shops where small metal nails called brass tacks were used to mark exact measurements or the final details on cloth and furniture. That's why to 'get down to brass tacks' means to stop small talk and deal with the most important facts.