сут|ь - ж. essence, substance
gist
~ дела the gist of the matter
дойти до ~и come* to the point
добраться до ~и дела get* at the root of things, get* down to bedrock
по ~и дела in reality
as a matter of fact
Большой русско-английский словарь
СУТЬ
жен. essence, core, main point, gist суть вопроса/проблемы – the crux/kernel/heart of the problem по сути дела – at bottom of fact, as a matter of fact, in point of fact дойти до сути – to come to the point, to touch the ground