get to the bottom of (something)
To determine the cause or source of something or solve the mystery of something. What is causing this water leak? Has anyone gotten to the bottom of it yet? I have every confidence that our detectives will get to the bottom of this crime. A: "Do you know why Sophia and Charlie broke up?" B: "Not yet, but I'll get to the bottom of it, don't you worry."
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
get to the bottom of something
Fig. to get an understanding of the causes of something. We must get to the bottom of this problem immediately. There is clearly something wrong here, and I want to get to the bottom of it.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
get to the bottom of
Find the basic underlying quality or cause of something. For example,
He was determined to get to the bottom of the problem. [Late 1700s] Also see
at bottom.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
get to the bottom of
find an explanation for (a mystery).Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
bottom of it, at the/get to the
To discover the origin of a problem, or the fundamental truth of an issue or event. The word “bottom” has been used in this way (to mean ultimate cause) since the sixteenth century. Shakespeare used it numerous times, as in “Is there no pity . . . that sees into the bottom of my grief?” (Romeo and Juliet, 3.5). Several early proverbs also refer to “bottom” in this way: “If thou canst not see the bottom, wade not”; and “He brought the bottome of the bag cleane out” (John Heywood, 1546). The pioneer anthropologist James Burnett, Lord Monboddo, wrote in 1773 (Of the Origin and Progress of Language), “In order to get to the bottom of this question.”
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer