in a nutshell
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in a nutshell
Where it comes from
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).
adverb
-
In summary; briefly or simply.
He had a lot to say, but his answer, in a nutshell, was no.
Similar: at the end of the day, in short
Translations
Every language
adv in summary
| Español | en resumen, en pocas palabras, en resumidas cuentas, dicho rápido y mal |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 要するに yō suru ni, つまりは tsumariwa |
| 中文 | 總而言之 /总而言之 zǒng'éryánzhī, 概括地說 /概括地说 gàikuò de shuō |
| हिन्दी | संक्षेप में saṅkṣep mẽ |
| Português | em poucas palavras |
| Français | en un mot, en résumé, en bref |
| Deutsch | kurzgesagt, mit einem Worte, in einer Nussschale |
| Italiano | in breve, in sostanza, in poche parole |
| Ελληνικά | εν συντομία en syntomía, περιληπτικά periliptiká, λακωνικά lakoniká, με λίγα λόγια me líga lógia |
| Русский | кра́тко krátko, вкра́тце vkrátce, в двух слова́х v dvux slováx, одни́м сло́вом odním slóvom, коро́че говоря́ koróče govorjá |
| Tiếng Việt | tóm lại |
Talk about this word "in a nutshell." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/in%20a%20nutshell. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. in a nutshell. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/in%20a%20nutshell "in a nutshell." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/in%20a%20nutshell.Cite this
@misc{in_a_nutshell_2026,
title = {in a nutshell},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/in%20a%20nutshell},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
