Boil Down

Pronunciation: /bɔɪl daʊn/

Definitions of boil down

verb to reduce or simplify something to its most essential or important aspects

Example Sentences

A1 I boil down the soup to make it thicker.

A2 To make caramel sauce, you need to boil down sugar and water until it thickens.

B1 The teacher boiled down the lesson to its most important points.

B2 After hours of research, I was able to boil down the information into a concise report.

C1 The detective had to boil down the evidence to solve the case.

C2 As a journalist, it's important to boil down complex issues for readers to understand.

Examples of boil down in a Sentence

formal In chemistry, the process of distillation involves boiling down a liquid to separate its components.

informal When you really boil it down, the issue is just a lack of communication between the two parties.

slang Let me boil it down for you - she's just not that into you.

figurative The argument eventually boiled down to a clash of egos rather than a difference in opinion.

Grammatical Forms of boil down

• past tense: boiled
• plural: boil down
• comparative: more boiled down
• superlative: most boiled down
• present tense: boil down
• future tense: will boil down
• perfect tense: have boiled down
• continuous tense: is boiling down
• singular: boil down
• positive degree: boil down
• infinitive: to boil down
• gerund: boiling down
• participle: boiled down

Origin and Evolution of boil down

First Known Use: 1250 year

Language of Origin: Middle English

Story behind the word: The term 'boil down' originated from Middle English, where 'boil' meant 'to cook in boiling water' and 'down' referred to reducing something in quantity or importance.

Evolution of the word: Over time, 'boil down' has evolved to mean reducing something to its essence or most important elements, often used in a figurative sense beyond just cooking.