day-by-day
adjective
taking place each day; daily.
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day-by-day
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day by day
day by dayOn each successive day, daily, as in Day by day he's getting better. Percy Bysshe Shelley used this expression, first recorded in 1362, in Adonais (1821): “fear and grief ... consume us day by day.”
day-by-day
American
[dey-bahy-dey]
/ ˈdeɪ baɪˈdeɪ /
adjective
day by day
Idioms
Etymology
Origin of day-by-day
Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
“Make Nice” is structured as a day-by-day account of the family’s stay on the island, with the focus shifting from Viv to Pete to Corey to Viv’s mouthy 14-year-old daughter, Ash.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Nathan adds: "You're trying to run a home, you're trying to maintain high-pressure jobs, as well as look after a four-year-old child that's just gone through an awful tragedy. It's impossible on a day-by-day basis."
From BBC ● May 29, 2026
"The nation's demand for change continues to grow day-by-day, getting stronger."
From Barron's ● Mar. 8, 2026
Rovere, on the other hand, found the book to be “barren of ideas and imagination,” and “scarcely more interesting or enlightening than the day-by-day newspaper accounts.”
From Salon ● Mar. 7, 2026
It lives in a day-by-day intimacy with every one of its acquaintances, and the love for it increases year by year for everyone who will listen to its teachings.
From Journeys Through Bookland, Vol. 10 The Guide by Charles Herbert Sylvester
"Some magic is happening. I was unlucky with injury and just going day by day," Rybakina told Sky Sports.
From BBC ● Sep. 12, 2026
In their small living room, his mother sighs: "He still has nightmares at night, and I am getting weaker day by day."
From Barron's ● Sep. 1, 2026
“It’s day by day with him,” Prior said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
However, there could be "significant variations from place to place and day by day", the forecaster said.
From BBC ● Jun. 21, 2026
The statute of limitations ticks itself out, day by day, all memory of the crime being washed away.
From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
