as in basic
of or relating to the simplest facts or theories of a subject
a meat-and-potatoes knowledge of figure skating is all that a spectator really needs
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in root
the central part or aspect of something under consideration
an article that never gets into the meat and potatoes of a solution to the city's rising crime rate
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of meat-and-potatoes
Joe Reid, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2026
Amaya Battle is a meat-and-potatoes basketball player.
—Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 17 Feb. 2026
Josh Miller, Southern Living, 7 Nov. 2025
That’s meat and potatoes y’all.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for meat-and-potatoes
Adjective
Wahlberg was a 20-something bad boy who took a more meat-and-potatoes (or Peter Berg and Peter Berg) route to popular success.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2026
Amaya Battle is a meat-and-potatoes basketball player.
—Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 17 Feb. 2026
Plural noun
Save as a collection on MyRecipes To some, the definition of a comforting dinner is meat and potatoes.
—Josh Miller, Southern Living, 7 Nov. 2025
That’s meat and potatoes y’all.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 21 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for meat-and-potatoes
Recent Examples of Synonyms for meat-and-potatoes
Adjective
-
After years of seeing Spirit lure leisure travellers, the major airlines, led by Delta, responded with humble basic-economy fares of their own.—
John Cassidy,
New Yorker,
11 May 2026
-
Why economists cared so much The basic facts of the late 1990s and early 2000s are that the United States was running large deficits.—
James Broughel,
Forbes.com,
10 May 2026
Adjective
-
The law also creates a discipline process for preschool and elementary students where there was none before.—
Stacker,
Hartford Courant,
9 May 2026
-
Yet many of its students aren’t demonstrating even an elementary grasp of free speech.—
Editorial,
Boston Herald,
9 May 2026
Adjective
-
Your payment method will automatically be charged in advance the introductory rate every 4 weeks for 1 year, and after 1 year the standard rate every 4 weeks.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
11 May 2026
-
In his introductory news conference Wednesday at the Advocate Center, Graham joked that starting out as a top executive is akin to becoming a first-time parent.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
6 May 2026
Adjective
-
In West Texas, some locals were hopeful that the exigencies of life in a rural area, where recordkeeping can be rudimentary and property boundaries aren’t always clear, might stymie the project, at least for a little while.—
Rachel Monroe,
New Yorker,
14 May 2026
-
Their earliest and biggest target has been Dax, a 32-year-old janitor-turned-rapper from Canada who spits overwrought motivational lyrics over rudimentary beats.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
8 May 2026
Adjective
-
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov indicated Wednesday that Moscow’s fundamental terms are unchanged, with Putin insisting that Ukraine pull its troops from the four regions — Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia — that Russia illegally annexed in September 2022 but hasn’t fully captured.—
Hanna Arhirova,
Chicago Tribune,
14 May 2026
-
More than a year later, Fúnez was arrested with two others, businessman Héctor Eduardo Méndez and Juan Ángel Ramos Gallegos, whom prosecutors accused of criminal association to the detriment of other fundamental rights.—
Marlon González,
Los Angeles Times,
13 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Meat-and-potatoes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/meat-and-potatoes. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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