1. (plural) the most basic facts or elements
   "he told us only the bare bones of the story"

1. Bone stripped of flesh
   "The archaeologists found bare bones at the excavation site"

Type of: bone, center [US], centre [Brit, Cdn], core, essence, gist, heart, heart and soul, inwardness, kernel, marrow, meat, nitty-gritty [informal], nub, os[2], pith, substance, sum

Encyclopedia: Bare bones