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• bare bones
  bare bones

  plural noun

  the irreducible minimum; the most essential components.
• bare-bones
  bare-bones

  adjective

  basic or simple; no-frills

bare bones

American  

plural noun

1. the irreducible minimum; the most essential components.

   Reduce this report to its bare bones. There is nothing left of the town but the bare bones—a couple of stores, a church, and a few houses.

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bare-bones British  

adjective

1. basic or simple; no-frills

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bare bones Idioms  

1. The mere essentials or plain, unadorned framework of something, as in This outline gives just the bare bones of the story; details will come later. This phrase transfers the naked skeleton of a body to figurative use. [c. 1900]

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Usage

What does bare bones mean? The bare bones is the absolute minimum, the plain essential elements or facts, or the most basic framework of something. Bare often means uncovered, but in this case it means unadorned, plain, or scarcely or just sufficient. Bare bones is often used to refer to something that only includes its essential parts and nothing else. The adjective form bare-bones means most basic and without any frills, as in My apartment is pretty bare-bones, with just a bedroom, bathroom, and kitchenette. Example: After the seniors graduate, the team will be left with only the bare bones of a squad, so they’ll need to recruit some more members. ​

Other Word Forms

• bare-bones
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of bare bones

First recorded in 1910–15

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bare bones bare-bones

Down to the bare bones due to a host of injuries, Roma moved into third thanks to quickfire late goals from Manu Kone and Matias Soule which broke Sassuolo's brave resistance.

From Barron's ● Jan. 10, 2026

But there was no sound team, no makeup, no construction — just the bare bones of what it takes to make something.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 30, 2024

A: The chair drafted a bare bones skeleton of a treaty.

From Science Magazine ● Nov. 25, 2024

If you have already cut your budget to the bare bones, it may be time for another tactic: negotiation.

From Salon ● Sep. 21, 2024

If they wanted to survive, they must travel light, harden their hearts against sentimental keepsakes, and trust that they could make do with the bare bones of equipment.

From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong

Realism is achieved not through bare-bones scenic furniture but through the combustible relationships of characters who exist with one another in a purgatory of disillusionment.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 29, 2026

As a no-frills carrier, Spirit adds pressure on larger airlines, which have responded with bare-bones "basic economy" offerings, according to Brueckner.

From Barron's ● Apr. 24, 2026

Travelers are also waking up to the reality of how little may actually be included in that bare-bones economy fare.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 10, 2026

The number of its bare-bones policies has more than doubled in the last two years.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 22, 2026

In consultation with Stimson, Truman decided to wait until the final day of the Potsdam conference and then treat Stalin to a bare-bones report.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik