get down to brass tacks
/ɡɛt ˈdaʊn tə bɹɑːs ˈtæks/
"get-down-to-brass-tacks" is a 19-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“get down to brass tacks” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 23
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To (start to) consider or deal with the most important details or facts about something.
Corpus desk
Index EN-get-down-to-brass-tacks · get down to brass tacks · English
get down to brass tacks · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables
- FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
- LEN-MEGA 23 letters
- VOW-5 5 vowels
- CONFUS-0 No pairs
- VAR-0 0 variants
- BOOK-THIN "G" thin
- PHOTO-UNK Peer pending
Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern
Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | get down to brass tacks |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ɡɛt ˈdaʊn tə bɹɑːs ˈtæks/ |
| Letters | 23 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Long-tail rank of “get down to brass tacks” in English
Rare enough to double-check
get down to brass tacks is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb, transcribed /ɡɛt ˈdaʊn tə bɹɑːs ˈtæks/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "To (start to) consider or deal with the most important details or facts about something.".
No misspelling variants are generated for get down to brass tacks in our index, which points to an orthography that plays by predictable English rules. No confusable counterpart is on file for this word, which typically means the spelling is too distinctive to be mistaken for another word.
Etymologically, the entry records: The origin is uncertain. It is probably a variant of the earlier term down to the brass (see, for example, the 1854 quotation), and the following etymologies have been suggested: * The term refers to the brass tacks used in upholstery which have to be remov… The correct English form is get down to brass tacks, spelled G-E-T- -D-O-W-N- -T-O- -B-R-A-S-S- -T-A-C-K-S.
Definition
- 1To (start to) consider or deal with the most important details or facts about something.
Recorded use
Wiktionary examplesThese source excerpts show how get down to brass tacks appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.
He did not wish to delay action, but was ready to vote instanter.—A reference now would amount to a defeat of the memorial. It was better to come right down to the brass and vote.
When you come down to brass tacks—if we may be allowed the expression—everybody is governed by selfishness.
Etymology
The origin is uncertain. It is probably a variant of the earlier term down to the brass (see, for example, the 1854 quotation), and the following etymologies have been suggested: * The term refers to the brass tacks used in upholstery which have to be removed when a piece of furniture is reupholstered, or brass tacks stuck into the counter of a draper’s shop or hardware store to measure items precisely in yards. * Another possibility is that the brass tacks are nails used to seal coffin lids, or tacks used to decorate or indicate a deceased person’s initials on such lids, and thus the term refers to dealing with matters as serious as death.
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.