parcel out

1. Divide into parts and distribute, as in She parceled out the remaining candy among the children. This idiom uses parcel in the sense of “divide into small portions.” [Mid-1500s]

Example Sentences

I scan the little slots until I find mine: a refill of Greek oregano, parceled out in a plastic baggie with a heat-sealed strip.

From Salon

Most of that funding has been parceled out in grants of $50,000 or less, and more than half of that funding flowed directly to individual states’ humanities councils.

From Los Angeles Times

He was a prolific writer and he parceled out songs to people that he cared about or was working with.

From Los Angeles Times

It is also the entry point to a messy interpersonal conflict that spills out from the classroom and involves decades of family history, which the screenplay slowly parcels out in agonizing, tantalizing drips of information.

From Los Angeles Times

He noted that the vast majority of the nation’s 2,000 four-year colleges and universities have not needed to use affirmative action to parcel out coveted seats because they admit most applicants.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• accord 
• allow 
• award 
• commit 
• deliver 
• donate 
• grant 
• hand out 
• hand over 
• permit 
• present 
• provide 
• sell 
• turn over