down to brass tacks origin

The family got down to brass tacks and discussed the issue of inheritance as he had left no will. The phrase get down to brass tacks is of uncertain etymology. "Brass, or bronze, tacks, used in boat-building, do not rust, and are far superior to so-called 'tin' tacks for durability. What we do know is that the phrase dates to at least the 1860s and that it is American, possibly Texas to be specific, in origin. No one knows why it was originally coined, but there are several explanations. quotations Synonyms In January 1863, it was published in a Texas newspaper, the Tri-Weekly Telegraph: "When you come down to 'brass tacks' - if we may be allowed the . In the idiom, brass tacks means (1) the essentials, or (2) the basic facts, so to get down to brass tacks is to focus on the essentials. The Proposed Theories for the Origin of Getting Down to Brass Tacks American History. Learn the meaning and origin of the English idiom 'get down to brass tacks' and get examples of use in sentences. It is reasonable to assume that the phrase was coined there, in or about the 1860s. Origin The phrase originated in USA in about the 1860s and the first printed record is from the Texas newspaper The Tri-Weekly Telegraph in January 1863. locución verbal: Unidad léxica estable formada de dos o más palabras que funciona como verbo ("sacar fuerzas de . 'Get down to brass tacks' is an American English idiom, meaning to get serious or practical about something. Beyond that, there is only speculation. I have discovered an earlier American-English phrase, to come (right) down to the brass, which meant: SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases Essential or necessary a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do idiom basically basis be a question of doing sth idiom box ticking brass dependence if/when push comes to shove idiom imply incumbent indispensable inhere in sth inherent need needed . The phrase's exact derivation is unknown, though there are a few theories. Let's get down to brass tacks. Get down to brass tacks : Phrases. Used primarily in the phrase, "come/get down to brass tacks." We eventually got down to brass tacks and came up with a solution. Deal with the important details.. Get down to brass tacks Meaning. Some think this late nineteenth-century term comes from Cockney rhyming slang for hard facts. G Share your thoughts rags to riches get over it Write & Win Idiom of the Day quantum leap Verb get down to brass tacks ( third-person singular simple present gets down to brass tacks, present participle getting down to brass tacks, simple past got down to brass tacks, past participle gotten down to brass tacks or got down to brass tacks ) ( idiomatic, chiefly US) To deal with the important details. Video shows what get down to brass tacks means. 'This isn't about getting down to brass tacks and working through the kinks of developing music.' 'You're better off when you're away from town, and you've got no choice but to get down to brass tacks.' 'Think I'll take a few more days before I get down to brass tacks and plot structure.' 'We got down to brass tacks in our labs . Answer (1 of 3): It seems this is a really tricky question and many respondents, far more learned than I have had a go without success. The derivation of 'getting down to brass tacks' is uncertain. We ask the people generally to come down to "brass tacks." If they will theorize, act on their theories, and if they will not act on their own theories, let them not lay themselves open to the charge of hypocrisy and dishonest greed, by demanding of others what they will not grant themselves." — para. Although it seems old, the usage of 'getting down to brass tacks' surfaced only in the 18 th century. Learn More About get down to brass tacks Share get down to brass tacks Dictionary Entries Near get down to brass tacks It is first recorded in 1863. The origin of the first phrase, dating from the late 1800s, is disputed. The phrase to get, or to come, down to brass tacks appeared in American English and means to concern oneself with the essential characteristics of something. get down to brass tacks v expr. How to pronounce, definition audio dictio. Meaning: Engage with the basic facts or realities. Many people attribute the origin of the phrase "getting down to brass tacks" to the state of Texas. With no qualification I'm going to suggest a slightly different interpretation than others in the hope we collectively can get to the bottom of it. One of the earliest uses of the phrase in print comes from a January 1863 edition of the Texas newspaper The Tri-Weekly Telegraph: "When you come down to brass tacks - if we may be allowed the expression - everybody is governed by selfishness." brass tacks The most important, fundamental, basic, or immediate facts, priorities, or realities of a situation. This is one of several phrases popular in the English language for driving a process toward a concrete conclusion. The origin of the expression "getting down to brass tacks" is thought to have originated in brass tacks that were placed at one-yard intervals along shop counters, in the days of dry goods stores where not only groceries were sold, but basic supplies including cloth. Despite its relative newness, no one knows for certain the origin of the phrase or exactly how it came to mean "to attend to or to consider . Learn the meaning and origin of the English idiom 'get down to brass tacks . One is that the expression is inspired by the centrality of actual brass tacks in furniture and upholstery. (A slight variant, "come down to brass tacks," was first recorded a few years earlier.) verbal expression: Phrase with special meaning functioning as verb--for example, "put their heads together," "come to an end." figurative, informal (discuss essentials) ir a lo esencial loc verb. Previous answ. Definition of get down to brass tacks informal : to start to discuss or consider the most important details or facts about something We finally got down to brass tacks and decided to work out a schedule for the project. The meaning of BRASS TACKS is details of immediate practical importance —usually used in the phrase get down to brass tacks. "When you come down to 'brass tacks' - if we may be allowed the expression - everybody is governed by selfishness." All of the other known early citations either originate in, or refer to, Texas. As a result, etymologists argue, getting down to brass tacks became synonymous with getting down to serious business — in this case, the very serious business of death. Tack is a short nail with a sharp point and a large head. The phrase get down to brass tin tacks, he explained, "was undeniably in everyday use in the British army between 1914 and 1920." And he insisted that only with tin and brass in modifying tacks does the idiom make sense. get down to brass tacks, to/let's To arrive at the heart of the matter. 11 The phrase is thought to have originated sometime in the 1800s, and was regularly used in newspapers of that era. Who's paying for all this? Its first known appearance, in the USA in 1863, was in the Texas newspaper The Tri-Weekly Telegraph: "When you come down to 'brass tacks' - if we may be . The "brass tacks" phrase has been attributed to the haberdashery trade. In an era when haberdashery was a commonly used word (not just something a writer has fun writing for nostalgia's sake like this moment for me personally), the shift from fabric sold by a rough "yard," as in an arm's length, to an exact repeatable measurement, as in precisely thirty . Question: I am interested in knowing the origin of the saying "get down to brass tacks." Answer: The phrase first appeared in print relatively recently, in 1903. 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