long and short of it, the

The substance or gist of something, as in The first page of this report will give you the long and short of it. This expression, originally stated as the short and long of it, dates from about 1500, the present order being established by the end of the 1600s.

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anchorite
a granular metamorphic rock.
a person who has retired to a solitary place for a life of religious seclusion.
a hobble or fetter for a horse or other animal.
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Words nearby long and short of it, the

lonesome, long, long abductor muscle of thumb, long account, long ago, long and short of it, the, long arm, long arm of the law, the, long axis, long barrow, long beach
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.