# in a nutshell

idiom

Source: https://englishreference.com/idiom/in-a-nutshell
Updated: 2026-08-10

## Meaning

In summary; briefly or simply.

## Examples

- That is the plan in a nutshell.
- The manager explained the new project goals in a nutshell so everyone understood the main tasks.
- To describe the complex history of the region in a nutshell, one must focus on the recurring struggle for independence.

## Origin

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).

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.