as in summarizes
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 boils down
This boils down to how the AI law opts to define AI.
—
Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 25 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
And the starter voting boils down to the fans (50 percent), the players (25 percent) and the media (25 percent).
—Zach Harper, New York Times, 19 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
The most critical portion of the wind to look at is the first third of the bullet’s flight, which boils down to the wind at the shooter’s position.
—John B. Snow, Outdoor Life, 15 Jan. 2026
Healthy cooking often boils down to accessibility and convenience; busy lives can leave people grabbing less nutritious alternatives.
—Virginia Willis, AJC.com, 11 Jan. 2026
In many ways, the backlash boils down to a trust problem.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 16 Dec. 2025
Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 25 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
And the starter voting boils down to the fans (50 percent), the players (25 percent) and the media (25 percent).
—Zach Harper, New York Times, 19 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
The most critical portion of the wind to look at is the first third of the bullet’s flight, which boils down to the wind at the shooter’s position.
—John B. Snow, Outdoor Life, 15 Jan. 2026
Healthy cooking often boils down to accessibility and convenience; busy lives can leave people grabbing less nutritious alternatives.
—Virginia Willis, AJC.com, 11 Jan. 2026
In many ways, the backlash boils down to a trust problem.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 16 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for boils down
Verb
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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
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Every month, the agent effectively proactively summarizes their performance to our point of contact.—
Megan Poinski,
Forbes.com,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
This article outlines a system to achieve niche fame using ChatGPT.—
Jodie Cook,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
-
The policy also outlines investment areas for the country, including incentives to attract foreign talent.—
Rachyl Jones,
semafor.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Boils down.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/boils%20down. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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