by inches

Idioms  

1. Also, inch by inch. Gradually, bit by bit, as in We found ourselves in rush hour traffic, moving by inches. Shakespeare used this term in Coriolanus (5:4): “They'll give him death by inches.” Despite the increasing use of metric measurements, it survives, often as an exaggeration of the actual circumstance. The phrase to inch along, first recorded in 1812, means “to move bit by bit,” as in There was a long line at the theater, just inching along.

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Example Sentences

Mullins led off with a bunt single when the ball rolled dead on the dirt about halfway to third base, fair by inches.

From Washington Times • Sep. 14, 2023

It uses an efficient rolling road block of police motorbikes and cars to bookend the peloton and team vehicles, all of which whizz by, inches from spectators.

From BBC • Jun. 17, 2023

Both teams had weapons, but both had stoppers, and you wondered whether this was going to be decided by inches or by somebody’s foot.

From Washington Post • Jan. 22, 2023

He bent his left-footed shot over the wall toward the far post, but missed high by inches.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 9, 2022

In a hub-scraping finish Seabiscuit dropped his head and won by inches.

From "Seabiscuit: An American Legend" by Laura Hillenbrand