be-all and end-all, the

Idioms  

1. The most important element or purpose, as in Buying a house became the be-all and end-all for the newlyweds. Shakespeare used this idiom in Macbeth (1:6), where Macbeth muses that “this blow might be the be-all and the end-all” for his replacing Duncan as king. [Late 1500s]

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Example Sentences

This is the be-all and end-all, the beginning and the end of the whole matter, and here therefore follow a few hints with regard to it.

From Stained Glass Work A text-book for students and workers in glass by Whall, C. W.