to get down to it
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To set about your work or whatever it is you have in hand in down- right earnest.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to get down to it” mean?
To set about your work or whatever it is you have in hand in down- right earnest.
Is “to get down to it” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.