drill down

verb

drilled down; drilling down; drills down

transitive + intransitive

: to thoroughly consider or analyze : examine

Although drilling down into all of the complications of the 2007 to 2009 economic and financial crisis is a task requiring more verbosity than a column permits, a quick rundown for context is worthwhile.

—M. Ray Perryman

But we don't have much data that drills down on the voting preferences of people in specific jobs, to distinguish between, say, dishwashers and factory workers.

—Irv Randolph

Matches are based on a lengthy questionnaire that drills down the specifics of your dating preferences and personality.

—Dorothy Pitti

Examples of drill down in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

After April, then fame, then drilling down on your right path, then help, protection, benevolence. —Tribune Content Agency, Baltimore Sun, 9 Jan. 2026

The Tigers also drilled down on not committing fouls in practice. —Maddie Hartley, Kansas City Star, 8 Jan. 2026

While the outside world locks into the exhilarating highlights, Johnson drills down on the nuances. —Dan Wiederer, New York Times, 7 Jan. 2026

Jordan drilled down on Smith’s call to a former colleague in 2022 to congratulate him on returning to the Justice Department and express interest in a possible position, as if there were something suspect in that ambition. —Ruth Marcus, New Yorker, 5 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1996, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for drill down

• adown
• blowdown
• breakdown
• countdown
• crackdown
• crosstown
• downtown
• drawdown
• dropdown
• facedown
• godown
• hometown