Idiom meaning, usage examples, facts

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GET TO THE BOTTOM OF (SMTH.)
to understand smth. completely by sorting through all the facts or information
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1. The detective had all the facts, but he couldn’t piece them together yet. He wasn’t certain what had happened, but he knew he would eventually get to the bottom of it.
2. Mark’s parents could tell he was getting into some kind of trouble. They confronted him and said they wanted to get to the bottom of the situation

The expression suggests the idea of a container (a situation) full of information or facts. Only the few facts on top are clear and they may not make much sense. When one finally gets to the bottom of the container (the situation), one will have gone through all the information and have a thorough understanding of how all the facts fit together.


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