Vincent Ding  +  379072 Wed, 13 Jun 07 03:10 PM I'm not sure if bottom line is a decent expression. An example I can give may go like this: You can only buy this house for 200,000 dollars at the least. It is the bottom line. I will not sell the house for a penny less. Thank you for your clarification. Vincent Vincent Ding Joined on Fri, Apr 29 2005 Full Member 182

	Mister Micawber  +  379078 Wed, 13 Jun 07 03:20 PM Yes, that is appropriate.  The phrase is usually used more metaphorically, though.  Bottom line = the decisive point. My first wife was a lousy cook and a sloppy housekeeper, but I stayed with her because she had a high-paying job-- that was the bottom line! The bottom line is I don't trust this president and his advisors. And there is the accountant's meaning (bottom line = the last line in a financial statement; the line that shows profit or loss): As a small business owner, if you don’t watch the bottom line, you can end up at the bottom of the barrel Mister Micawber Joined on Wed, Aug 4 2004 Yokohama Veteran Member 30,822 'The question is,' said Humpty Dumpty, 'which is to be master-- that's all.'