# in a nutshell

> English word · Adverb

## Definitions
1. In summary; briefly or simply.

## Etymology
Calque of New Latin in nuce, derived from an anecdote in Pliny the Elder, who ascribes to Cicero the claim that the whole Iliad was once written on parchment and enclosed within a nutshell (Naturalis Historia 7.21.85).
Compare typologically Czech stručný, stručně (< struk).

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/in-a-nutshell