English · Idiom Candidate

to the point

Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.

Meaning · English

Direct and concise, without unnecessary detail

Literally: in the direction of the point

Where it’s used: Used Widespread English

Examples

Her presentation was to the point and effective

AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)

Sources & notes

Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.

Equivalents & related

Near equivalent khẩn trương (adjective) quick, resolute, to the point, without hesitation or dilly-dallying Tiếng Việt Near equivalent mửa mật (adverb) with much effort, to the point of exhaustion Tiếng Việt Near equivalent tê dại (adjective) stiff to the point of becoming senseless or paralyzed Tiếng Việt Near equivalent cù nhây (adjective) joking around; fooling around (to the point of being annoying) Tiếng Việt Near equivalent ô dề Over the top; doing the absolute most — extra to the point of comedy. Tiếng Việt Near equivalent đường đột (adjective) too sudden or abrupt, to the point of being shocking, uncalled for, or even rude Tiếng Việt Near equivalent nghèo đói (adjective) so poor up to the point of having no food Tiếng Việt Near equivalent rẻ mạt (adjective) cheap almost to the point of being worthless; dirt-cheap Tiếng Việt Near equivalent đại sự (adverb) a lot, repeatedly, to the point of excessively Tiếng Việt Near equivalent ê hề (adjective) in great abundance to the point that one feels unable to use all of said abundant thing Tiếng Việt Near equivalent mất ăn mất ngủ overthinking, worrying, and stressing out to the point of not eating or sleeping well Tiếng Việt Near equivalent từa lưa (adjective) having been excreted excessively to the point of making the face of the person crying look messy Tiếng Việt Near equivalent long sòng sọc (adjective) extremely intense, to the point of popping blood vessels Tiếng Việt Near equivalent sít sao (adjective) quick; resolute; to the point; without hesitation or dilly-dallying; continuous Tiếng Việt Near equivalent tối tăm mặt mũi (adverb) being to heavily burdened by greater workload than one can withstand, nearly to the point of exhaustion, being overwhelmed Tiếng Việt Near equivalent dày cộp (adjective) excessively thick (to the point of being cumbersome) Tiếng Việt Near equivalent tham sinh uý tử to value one's life so much to the point of being cowardly Tiếng Việt Near equivalent mụ mị (adjective) worn out to the point of being dazed Tiếng Việt Near equivalent over the top Excessive or exaggerated beyond what is normal English · via ô dề

Lighter cards are two steps away in the meaning graph — equivalents of equivalents, reached via the entry shown on the card.

Common questions

What does “to the point” mean?

Direct and concise, without unnecessary detail Literally: in the direction of the point

Is “to the point” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

What is the closest equivalent?

“khẩn trương” (Tiếng Việt) — near equivalent.