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in detail

in detail

77 3.1
Give all important facts so someone understands
  • idiom
translation icon : en detalle
  • She was able to tell me in detail what happened.
  • describe in detail
  • explain in detail
  • discuss in detail

And I drew it to scale in detail with lots of notes and stuff.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • We will talk about this scheme in detail in the next lecture.

  • Now we should go through the code and see in detail how the two different applications work.

  • Now we can answer in detail exactly what is heat.

  • And we will go over these in detail throughout this video.

  • So we agreed we would look at it in detail and look at all the different attacks that happened in the area at the time.

  • Now let's talk in detail about the camera.

  • So let me just describe in detail the problem we're trying to solve.

  • I was hoping to examine your copy in detail.

  • The next few pages will outline each of these steps in detail and explain the implications for PETE programs.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The report examined the issue in detail, providing all the necessary facts and figures.

Synonyms

thoroughly
vsin detail
259 3.5

To do something completely and carefully

is about including key facts and steps rather than every single item
elaborately
vsin detail
11 4.5

In a way that has many small details and rich decoration

is focused on including key facts and steps rather than decorative additions
exhaustively
vsin detail
  • Formal
6 6.7

In a way that includes every part and leaves nothing out

is less absolute and focuses on key facts and steps not every item
in an elaborate way
vsin detail
4.4

With many careful details and clear planning

is about covering important facts simply rather than adding complex parts

Antonyms

1.0

Usually or in most cases

14 5.3

In a way that only looks at the surface and not deeply

How Detailed

meticulously
32 8.3
thoroughly
259 3.5
in detail
77 3.1
in general
219 1.6
briefly
414 1.0

Surface Forms

in detail positive
in details positive

Morphology

in + detail

The meaning 'thoroughly, including all important facts' is directly derivable from combining 'in' (inside/within) with 'detail' (specific facts); 'in detail' literally means 'within the details' and therefore is immediately comprehensible to a learner who knows both words. This composition is a transparent, cross-linguistic pattern (e.g., Spanish 'en detalle', French 'en détail'), not an idiomatic shift, so it should be accessible at B1 level.

Etymology

The phrase in detail comes from the image of breaking something into small parts: the word detail once meant a small part, and to look in each part is to show every little piece. So, to explain something in detail means 'thoroughly'.