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

In the bottom of the ninth in Game 7, playing second base with the infield in, Rojas cleanly fielded a grounder and threw out Isiah Kiner-Falefa by inches at home plate to save the game.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 27, 2025

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

A homer by Met Lee Mazzilli in the eighth that by inches cleared the 316-foot wall in left field tied it.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 30, 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

An empty Dasani bottle missed my ear by inches.

From "Schooled" by Gordon Korman