back-of-the-envelope

back-of-the-envelope

English

Etymology

From the idea that the calculation or reasoning would be jotted down on any available scrap of paper such as the actual back of an envelope.

Pronunciation

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Adjective

back-of-the-envelope

1. (idiomatic) Approximate, rough, simplified, especially of a calculation, estimation or other reasoning.

   Do some back-of-the-envelope calculations before all the facts come in.

Alternative forms

• back-of-an-envelope

Translations

Translations

Chinese: Mandarin: 粗略的 (cūlüè de) Danish: please add this translation if you can Finnish: ruutupaperi-

French: dos d'une enveloppe, sur un coin de table (fr), à l'arrache (fr), vite fait (fr) German: please add this translation if you can Portuguese: please add this translation if you can Russian: please add this translation if you can