What does ‘get down to brass tacks’ mean?
To “get down to brass tacks” means to get to the essential facts. A 19th-century American idiom of uncertain origin; not in Brewer's 1898.
Origin
- A 19th-century American idiom of uncertain origin; not in Brewer's 1898.
How to use it
- Common signal to stop preliminaries.
- Example: Enough small talk — let's get down to brass tacks.
Source:
Last verified: 2026-07-18
- Definitions and origins are drawn from public-domain reference works, primarily Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898), with modern usage notes clearly marked.