kernel; substance; core; center; centre; essence; gist; heart; heart and soul; inwardness; marrow; meat; nub; pith; sum; nitty-gritty




the choicest or most essential or most vital part of some idea or experience

"the gist of the prosecutor's argument"; "the heart and soul of the Republican Party"; "the nub of the story"

Type of:
  • content; cognitive content; mental object

Types:
  • bare bones
  • hypostasis
  • quiddity; haecceity
  • quintessence
  • stuff


WordNet Lexical Database v3.0, © 2006 Princeton University