Meanings
- idiomaticnot comparableA small amount at a time.
Because language is produced and processed over time, we get it bit by bit.
2025, Edward A. F. Gibson, “Preliminaries: Components of Language Structure” (chapter 2), in Syntax: A Cognitive Approach, MIT Press, →DOI, →ISBN, page 232 more examples
There’s a sick comfort in reciting this litany of defects. Maybe I sensed them at the time but I never put them into words. Now that I suspect he’s a cunt, however, I’m hauling them out and examining them in the pitiless light of day. This happens at the end of every relationship, I’ve found, but in this particular case I have an even more urgent need to destroy my lover’s loveableness, bit by bit, until it’s entirely gone.
2015, Deborah Moggach, “Oreya, West Africa”, in Something to Hide, London: Chatto & Windus, →ISBN, part 2, page 180Storm Charlie had raged throught [sic] the night and was unleashing further gusts on the morning that RAIL was due to inspect a vegetation management project in Kent. Bit by bit, the train timetable unravelled. A trip beginning at Bradford-on-Avon belatedly reached Bath, but that turned out to be journey's end.
2020 June 3, Andrew Mourant, “A safer railway in a greener habitat”, in Rail, page 58Synonyms: little by little, incrementally, step by step, stepwise, footmeal, gradatim, piece by piece
Synonyms & antonyms
adverbA small amount at a time.
More synonyms by meaning
adverba little bit at a time
adverbin a gradual manner
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
From bit + by + bit. Compare West Frisian bytsje by bytsje (“bit by bit”), Dutch beetje bij beetje (“bit by bit”).
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Arabic شَيْئًا فَشَيْئًا
- شَيْئًا فَشَيْئًا (šayʔan fašayʔan)a small amount at a time
Basque pixkana-pixkana
- pixkana-pixkanaa small amount at a time
Catalan a poc a poc
- a poc a poca small amount at a time
Chinese Cantonese 漸漸 /渐渐, 逐漸 /逐渐
- 漸漸 /渐渐a small amount at a time
- 逐漸 /逐渐a small amount at a time
Chinese Mandarin 逐漸 /逐渐, 漸漸 /渐渐
- 逐漸 /逐渐 (zhújiàn)a small amount at a time
- 漸漸 /渐渐 (jiànjiàn)a small amount at a time
Danish lidt efter lidt, peu à peu pø om pø
- lidt efter lidta small amount at a time
- peu à peu pø om pøa small amount at a time
Dutch beetje bij beetje
- beetje bij beetjea small amount at a time
Esperanto iom post iom
- iom post ioma small amount at a time
Finnish hiljalleen, pala palalta
- hiljalleena small amount at a time
- pala palaltaa small amount at a time
- pikkuhiljaaa small amount at a time
- vähän kerrassaana small amount at a time
- vähitellena small amount at a time
- vähä vähältäa small amount at a time
French peu à peu, petit à petit
- peu à peua small amount at a time
- petit à petita small amount at a time
German Stück für Stück, nach und nach
- Stück für Stücka small amount at a time
- nach und nacha small amount at a time
- allmählich peu à peua small amount at a time
Hebrew מעט מעט
- מעט מעטa small amount at a time
Hungarian apránként, lassanként
- apránkénta small amount at a time
- lassankénta small amount at a time
Irish ó ghiota go giota
- ó ghiota go giotaa small amount at a time
Italian a poco a poco, man mano
- a poco a pocoa small amount at a time
- man manoa small amount at a time
Japanese 少しずつ, 追々
- 少しずつ (sukoshizutsu)a small amount at a time
- 追々 (oioi)a small amount at a time
Korean 야금야금
- 야금야금 (yageumyageum)a small amount at a time
Latin paulātim, tractim
- paulātima small amount at a time
- tractima small amount at a time
- pauxillātima small amount at a time
Māori turuki
- turukia small amount at a time
Norwegian pø om pø
- pø om pøa small amount at a time
Norwegian Bokmål litt etter litt, litt etter hvert
- litt etter litta small amount at a time
- litt etter hverta small amount at a time
- pø om pøa small amount at a time
Persian کمکم
- کمکم (kam-kam)a small amount at a time
Polish krok po kroku, po trochu
- krok po krokua small amount at a time
- po trochua small amount at a time
Portuguese de pouco em pouco, pouco a pouco
- de pouco em poucoa small amount at a time
- pouco a poucoa small amount at a time
- aos poucosa small amount at a time
Romanian puțin câte puțin
- puțin câte puțina small amount at a time
Russian ма́ло-пома́лу, понемно́гу
- ма́ло-пома́лу (málo-pomálu)a small amount at a time
- понемно́гу (ponemnógu)a small amount at a time
- постепе́нно (postepénno)a small amount at a time
Scottish Gaelic mean air mhean, beag air bheag
- mean air mheana small amount at a time
- beag air bheaga small amount at a time
- ceum is ceuma small amount at a time
Spanish poco a poco, a poquitos
- poco a pocoa small amount at a time
- a poquitosa small amount at a time
Swedish lite i taget, pö om pö
- lite i tageta small amount at a time
- pö om pöa small amount at a time
- bit för bita small amount at a time
- efterhanda small amount at a time
Tagalog paunti-unti
- paunti-untia small amount at a time
Turkish az az, azar azar
- az aza small amount at a time
- azar azara small amount at a time
Ukrainian потро́ху
- потро́ху (potróxu)a small amount at a time
Vietnamese dần dần
- dần dầna small amount at a time
Welsh bob yn dipyn, fesul tipyn
- bob yn dipyna small amount at a time
- fesul tipyna small amount at a time
- bob yn ronyna small amount at a time
Yiddish שטיקלעכווײַז
- שטיקלעכווײַז (shtiklekhvayz)a small amount at a time
Cite this entry
bit by bit. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bit%20by%20bit
“bit by bit.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bit%20by%20bit. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “bit by bit,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/bit%20by%20bit.
Source: bit by bit on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.