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Synonyms

very thing, the

Idioms  

  1. Exactly what is needed or wanted, as in That hat's the very thing to complete the costume. This idiom, which uses very to denote exact identity, was first recorded in 1768.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He had that very thing the FBI was trying to bring down.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 21, 2023

To love "Emily in Paris" would be to love the very thing the show tells us to hate.

From Salon • Dec. 31, 2022

Shock, however, designed the second home to do the very thing the new program intends: add to the badly needed housing stock.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 13, 2021

Once you start looking for those links, you risk limiting the very thing the artists have sought to preserve: The individuality and sui generis expressive content of each work.

From Washington Post • Nov. 1, 2017

I had been considering that very thing, the thought of Christmas in prison being so depressing, but the memo pretty much torpedoed the idea.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.