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(Native speaker here) A bit unsure about exactly when you can use “Long story short”

JW162000
Ok so, I just explained a pretty long thing in an in-depth way to my mother. At the end of the explanation, I said “So long story short-“ then summarised everything I just explained into a brief one-sentence conclusion. She laughed and playfully said “You’ve just told me all that and *then* say ‘long story short’? You’ve already told me the long version!” And that actually got me thinking. Is she right? Are you only supposed to say “long story short” if someone asks for a story and you skip it all and just give the brief version? I know that is a way you can use it, eg “Hey tell me what happened at the party last night” “Well, long story short, my boyfriend got in a huge fight cuz another dude insulted me”. But can you also use it in the way I did? (Say I went into full detail about the party story then ended it with “so long story short, my boyfriend has a temper!”).

22 comments

rigid1122•
There was nothing wrong with how you used it. It can be used in either way.
bloodectomy•
Your mother is right. You don't say "long story short" if you already told the whole story.  You use "long story short" as a warning that you're going to gloss over or completely omit all details. "What the hell happened here?" "Yeah, sorry about the big mess. Long story short, we have a dog now."
ringobob•
I wouldn't use it the way you used it. I understand where you're coming from, and the words make sense that way, but I understand the phrase to mean that you're skipping or compressing parts of the story, in order to make a long story shorter. It would sound weird to me, to use it in the way you used it. But I'd probably assume you were being sarcastic, unless I was very familiar with your tone.
silliestboots•
When I've done that (gone on a lengthy ramble) and realize it too late, I'll sometimes jokingly say just before the end of the story, "anyway, long story short (too late for that now!)" in a joking, self depricating way which acknowledges I recognize I've been too verbose.
ExitingBear•
It's like tl;dr - but you don't include the long part. Just the single sentence.
Wanderingthrough42•
I only see "to cut a long story short" when you are leaving out details. Usually, I tell the beginning and the end but not the middle. Person one: Ms. Wandering, do you know why your students are accusing each other of murder? Person two: We're doing a science project and they named all the plants. Long story short, Jonathan didn't make it.
Parking_Champion_740•
I think it’s normally used to tell a shortened version of a complicated story (see yadda yadda yadda episode of Seinfeld)
Cuboidal_Hug•
Your mom is right. You can use it to go straight to a summary of what happened, or to cut short a story you may have started to tell, but want to wrap up quickly without going into a lot more detail
Cliffy73•
I would not use it in that situation. It’s not meant to introduce a summary (I guess sometimes people use it that way), but better used to elide detail when you’re telling a story that could be interesting or even partly relevant, but which isn’t necessary for the story to have its point.
honkoku•
I think she may be right; it seems like you were using the phrase more as a spoken "tl;dr" but I think more often "long story short" is used when you aren't going to tell the full story.
Ok-Replacement-2738•
When you're taking a long story, and condensing it into a short story. Usually to summerise a topic, although it could omit the initial explanation in a way saying, 'the deeper context is currently irrelevent.' Long story short, Bob killed Frank. Bob killed Frank, and the reasoning isn't important, otherwise we'd have given the long story. Otherwise it's just used to initiate a *really brief* summary.
Prestigious-Fan3122•
I often respond to my husband "So, long story short" by interjecting "TOO LATE!"
Imightbeafanofthis•
It is used both ways, but it is more common to say "Long story short," and summarize, than to explain in detail, then say, "Long story short...", and summarize. Maybe we should just summarize at the end with **tw;dl** (too wordy; didn't listen) instead. 😏
MangoPug15•
I don't know if that's a "correct" usage, but it seems reasonable to me. Providing a summary of what you said at the end of a long, winding story can be helpful to get back to your point, and I think "long story short" is a reasonable way to indicate that you're doing that.
notacanuckskibum•
“To cut a long story short” is the full phrase. Is the verbal equivalent of tl:dr. But yes, since the goal is to save time you usually say it instead of the long story, not after the long story.
SagebrushandSeafoam•
I know two ways to use it: * To tell a story quickly rather than at length. * To cut a long story short, because you realize it's going on too long, and so you summarize the final part rather than telling it in full. Similar to the listener saying, "Cut to the chase." I would not use it for a recap.
AdmiralMemo•
The way you used "long story short" is how I would use "TLDR."
Responsible_Heron394•
I think American speakers will use the shorter version. As a Brit, I always say, "To cut a long story short"
IanDOsmond•
You absolutely can use it the way you did – and you absolutely csn tease someone for doing so, the way your mother did.
x0xDaddyx0x•
The best way to use it is to completely omit all of the key details from the filling part of a story sandwich such that the listener has absolutely no idea how the start and end join together. For extra credit you should use this to explain why the listeners life has now been seriously negatively impacted, for example they own a cat now, when they are allegeric to cats. So, long story short; your dishwasher is broken, anyway, I gotta run. I'll see you later.
OldLeatherPumpkin•
American here. The way you used it seems fine to me. It can be used to signal that you’re summarizing the main idea or important takeaways of what you just said, like TL;DR. I’ve used it that way myself, and also heard it used that way many times by other native speakers. It can also be used to skip telling the details and jump straight to the point, or to cut yourself off in the middle of a story if you don’t feel like telling everything and just want to get to the point quickly. 
SnooDonuts6494•
You are overthinking things. She'd probably have said the exact same thing to me. You didn't make an error with your language.