do what it says on the tin

A form of do exactly what it says on the tin — To do what is described or what one would expect, with no further explanation needed.

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Meanings

verbdo what it says on the tin (third-person singular simple present does what it says on the tin, present participle doing what it says on the tin, simple past did what it said on the tin, past participle done what it said on the tin)

present singular third person does what it says on the tin · participle present doing what it says on the tin · past did what it said on the tin · participle past done what it said on the tin

  1. alternativeAlternative form of do exactly what it says on the tin.
Cite this entry
APA

do what it says on the tin. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/do%20what%20it%20says%20on%20the%20tin

MLA

“do what it says on the tin.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/do%20what%20it%20says%20on%20the%20tin. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “do what it says on the tin,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/do%20what%20it%20says%20on%20the%20tin.

Source: do what it says on the tin on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.