as in to summarize
to make into a short statement of the main points (as of a report)
the discussion of the problem can be boiled down to a couple of critical points
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Recent Examples of boil down
This could boil down to Sam Darnold versus Matthew Stafford.
—
Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2026
Like a lot of messy divorces, this started with a wandering eye, a lover scorned and boils down to the money.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 21 Jan. 2026
The debate boils down to two conferences, the Big Ten and SEC, that both want to expand but have widely different visions of how far expansion should go.
—Arkansas Online, 19 Jan. 2026
What all this boils down to is that even a laser weapon that's already shooting down hostile drones is streets away from one that's officially part of the armory.
—New Atlas, 17 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for boil down
Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2026
Like a lot of messy divorces, this started with a wandering eye, a lover scorned and boils down to the money.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 21 Jan. 2026
The debate boils down to two conferences, the Big Ten and SEC, that both want to expand but have widely different visions of how far expansion should go.
—Arkansas Online, 19 Jan. 2026
What all this boils down to is that even a laser weapon that's already shooting down hostile drones is streets away from one that's officially part of the armory.
—New Atlas, 17 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for boil down
Recent Examples of Synonyms for boil down
Verb
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During the dialogue, do not reveal or summarize these characteristics during the simulation.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
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With this one line, Julian neatly summarizes the direction Volpe’s film is about to take.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
25 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio outlined the three-step plan for what comes next for Venezuela on Wednesday.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
8 Jan. 2026
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During their first year, president typically address a joint session of Congress early on in their tenure to outline a vision or agenda, before delivering State of the Union addresses to lawmakers in subsequent years.—
Kaia Hubbard,
CBS News,
7 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Boil down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/boil%20down. Accessed 28 Jan. 2026.
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