Down to a T
To a T / Suit someone to a T
Alla perfezione
To a T / Suit someone to a T
Alla perfezione
Meanings
To perfection
Examples
I got him down to a T, I know exactly what his reactions are going to be
Lo conosco troppo bene e so esattamente quali saranno le sue reazioniThe bride had the garden wedding reception planned down to a T, except for the thunderstorm...
La sposa aveva organizzato alla perfezione il ricevimento del matrimonio in giardino, tranne che per il temporale...He's very proud of his first acting job. He studied and rehearsed his part down to a T
È molto orgoglioso del suo primo ruolo da attore, quindi ha studiato e provato la sua parte alla perfezioneOrigin
"To a T", which is sometimes written "to a tee", is an old phrase and is first recorded in James Wright's satire The Humours and conversations of the town, 1693: "All the under Villages and Towns-men come to him for Redress; which he does to a T."
Most likely, the T could be the first letter of the word tittle. A tittle is a small stroke or point used in orthographic details, such as the dot over an i or a j or such as an accent mark. The consequent sense being "to the smallest detail."
The best reason for believing that this is the source of the T is that the phrase "to a tittle" existed in English more than a century before "to a T", with the same meaning. For example, in Edward Hall's Chronicles, circa 1548, we find: "I then... began to dispute with my selfe, little considerynge that thus my earnest was turned euen to a tittyl not so good as, estamen."