down to the short strokes
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.74 in modern English
35
Scrabble Score
21
Letters
3
Syllables
10
Unique Chars
Meaning
adj
In the final steps or decisive phase of an undertaking, especially one which has been lengthy or laborious.
adv
To the final steps or decisive phase of an undertaking, especially one which has been lengthy or laborious.
Example Sentences
- ""I would say we are down to the short strokes, down to the cleanup phase" of the investigation, said E. Campion Kersten, a Fox Point lawyer."
- ""You should never count Lyndon out," Nixon said. "When it comes down to the short strokes, there's no one who can handle them better than Lyndon Johnson."
- "When the budget negotiations get down to the short strokes in October, should I cave or take the "train wreck"?"
- "Anyone who wants to vote on delegates who will then decide whether to ratify the deal must have a membership by the end of this week. "It's getting down to the short strokes," MacKay said."
Etymology
Possibly an allusion to painting, in which a painter typically finishes a work with short, careful, finishing strokes of the paint brush, or an allusion to golf, in which a player concludes each hole by making short strokes with a putter. In swimming competition, as a swimmer nearly reaches a wall to turn or to finish, the competitor might take a shorter stroke to start the turn smoothly, or to finish faster.