the long and short
The whole story
The long and short of something is its essence or summary—the essential point stripped of elaboration: The long and short of it is that we can't afford the house.
The phrase promises brevity after complexity, delivering the bottom line regardless of whatever details preceded it.
- upshotFinal outcome
- net resultFinal effect after everything
- in a nutshellIn condensed form
- cut to the chaseSkip to essentials
- digestMetabolize or summarize
summary · crux · straight to the point · gist · bare bones · bottom line · brass tacks · pith · meat · heart of the matter · in essence · essence · abbreviated · distill · core · encapsulate · substance · sum total
the long and shortpartial truth
Incomplete but not false
selective truth · fragments · bits and pieces · half-truth · half-truths
the long and shortbeating around the bush
Avoiding direct communication
evasion · circumlocution · obfuscation · hedging · equivocation
long, short, longer, longest, lengthen, longish, longing, prolong, prolonged