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

If a container of argon has a volume of 336 cubic inches under a pressure of 2,500 psi, what will be its volume if the pressure is decreased to 2,000 psi?

From Textbooks • Apr. 22, 2020

The horizontal two-cylinder “popper” engine displaces 465 cubic inches and heaves its pistons at 750 rpm, making about 25 hp at the flywheel and 16 hp at the draw bar.

From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 7, 2018

I toss a pair of high heels down the garbage chute, I’ve gained 200 cubic inches of closet space.

From New York Times • Apr. 7, 2016

Regulations give the pump plus or minus 6 cubic inches.

From Washington Times • Sep. 20, 2014

The volume of these same toy blocks varies between 1 and 125 cubic inches.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos