nitty-gritty

nitty-gritty
/nit"ee grit"ee/, Slang.
n.
1. the essential substance or details of a matter; basics; crux: Let's skip the chitchat and get down to the nitty-gritty.
adj.
2. fundamental, detailed, or probing: nitty-gritty questions.
3. direct and practical: nitty-gritty advice; a nitty-gritty system.
[1960-65, Amer.; rhyming compound of uncert. orig.]

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Universalium. 2010.

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  • nitty gritty — If people get down to the nitty gritty, they concentrate on the most important and serious issues …   The small dictionary of idiomes

  • nitty-gritty — (n.) basic facts, 1961, knitty gritty, American English, said to have been chiefly used by black jazz musicians, perhaps ultimately from nit and grits finely ground corn. As an adjective from 1966 …   Etymology dictionary

  • nitty-gritty — [n] heart of the matter basics, bottom line*, chief part, chief thing, core, essential part, focus, fundamentals, gist, important matter, nuts and bolts*, root, the facts*; concepts 442,668,826 …   New thesaurus

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  • nitty-gritty — ☆ nitty gritty [nit′ē grit′ē ] n. [orig. black slang: rhyming euphemism for shitty] Slang the actual, basic facts, elements, issues, etc …   English World dictionary

  • Nitty Gritty — This article is about the singer. For other uses, see Nitty gritty. Nitty Gritty Birth name Glen Augustus Holness Born 1957 Origin Kingston, Jamaica Died 24 June 1991 …   Wikipedia

  • nitty-gritty — [[t]nɪ̱ti grɪ̱ti[/t]] also nitty gritty N SING: usu the N If people get down to the nitty gritty of a matter, situation, or activity, they discuss the most important, basic parts of it or facts about it. [INFORMAL] The city s newspapers still… …   English dictionary

  • nitty-gritty — noun informal the nitty gritty the basic and practical facts of a subject or activity: get down to the nitty gritty: Let s get down to the nitty gritty and work out the costs, shall we? …   Longman dictionary of contemporary English

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