A: My parents would like to meet you, Ted.

B: Sure. When?

A: Our entire family will be going to an expensive restaurant tomorrow for dinner.

B: But I have a lecture to attend tomorrow evening.

A: You’d better get dressed and be there, no ifs, ands or buts.

Note: This is spoken language, meaning “without excuses or doubts.” It’s common for people to make excuses for themselves, especially when trying to wiggle their way out of certain responsibilities. These excuses will oftentimes involve the conjunctions if, and, or but. For example, a kid is asked to take out the trash, yet instead of doing so the kid responds: “It’s dark outside and I’m tired, so I’ll do it tomorrow.” The phrase is at least over 150 years old, as it has been used in various works since the 1800s.