phrase🎓 English idiom
long story short
to summarize quickly
What it means
Used to introduce a brief summary of events, skipping the lengthy details. It signals that the speaker is getting straight to the outcome or main point.
Words like “long story short” are exactly the kind of vocabulary our English vocabulary size test measures — find out how many English words you know.
Examples
- Long story short, the flight was cancelled and we drove home instead.
- We had a few problems with the supplier, but long story short, it's all sorted now.
- Long story short, she got the promotion she had worked so hard for.
- To make a long story short, we lost the keys and missed the show.
Where it comes from
A condensed form of the older phrase "to make a long story short," in common use since at least the 19th century.
Related idioms
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