very thing, the

Idioms and Phrases

Exactly what is needed or wanted, as in That hat's the very thing to complete the costume . This idiom, which uses very to denote exact identity, was first recorded in 1768.

Example Sentences

"Aspects of this legislation risks suffocating the very thing that makes English football so unique, the aspiration that allows clubs to rise and succeed in our pyramid system. The ambition that means fans can dream," she said.

From BBC

It's not lost on the audience that the very thing that caused Tia's death is something Alice has to master.

From Salon

Plastic production was responsible for roughly 5% of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions in 2019 — the very thing driving climate change and severe flooding.

From Salon

“It’s hugely unfair for someone who could live less than 24 months without treatment to be denied the very thing that could give them more time with their loved ones because of a change to the system.”

From BBC

Throughout it all, the 23-year-old has been grappling with the very thing a sportsperson tries to protect: Bell has been going through a painstaking remodelling of her action.

From BBC

Related Words

• actually
• categorically
• definitely
• doubtless
• exactly
• positively
• precisely
• really
• surely
• truly
• unconditionally
• unquestionably