1
as in step
a very small distance or degree
give them an inch, and they'll take a mile
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
1
as in to encroach
to advance gradually beyond the usual or desirable limits
every year the water inches further up the embankments, threatening to permanently engulf the island city
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
Examples Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of inch
Remington Miller, arkansasonline.com, 8 Jan. 2025
Advertisement In Texas, crews treated the roads in the Dallas area in anticipation of a storm that was expected to bring up to 4 inches of snow on Thursday.
—Hannah Fingerhut and Ben Finley, Los Angeles Times, 7 Jan. 2025
Hakyung Kim,sawdah Bhaimiya, CNBC, 17 Jan. 2025
Apparel goods sales inched up 0.3 percent year-over-year.
—Denni Hu, WWD, 17 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for inch 
Noun
As of Wednesday afternoon, Little Rock is forecast to receive around 9 inches of snow, Goudsward said.
—Remington Miller, arkansasonline.com, 8 Jan. 2025
Advertisement In Texas, crews treated the roads in the Dallas area in anticipation of a storm that was expected to bring up to 4 inches of snow on Thursday.
—Hannah Fingerhut and Ben Finley, Los Angeles Times, 7 Jan. 2025
Verb
The 2-year Treasury yield inched up 4 basis points at 4.278%.
—Hakyung Kim,sawdah Bhaimiya, CNBC, 17 Jan. 2025
Apparel goods sales inched up 0.3 percent year-over-year.
—Denni Hu, WWD, 17 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for inch
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inch
Noun
-
The blue and yellow of the Barbados flag was displayed high as Zane Maloney stood victorious on the top step of the podium in Bahrain.—
Kanzah Maktoum,
Forbes,
18 Jan. 2025
-
The lobby and ground-level restaurants are completely level, with no steps.—
Mariette Williams,
Travel + Leisure,
18 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Forecasters and scientists say a perfect storm of weather conditions set the stage for the fires' explosive growth: hurricane-force winds, low humidity, and relentless drought conditions.—
Christopher Cann,
USA TODAY,
17 Jan. 2025
-
Her resignation in December, spurred by disagreements with Trudeau over economic policies, set the stage for his departure amid declining popularity.—
Amir Daftari,
Newsweek,
17 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Scores of other active projects would be discussed in other meetings, on other days—including museum spaces in Bilbao, Madrid, and San Diego, and a proposal for a tower in Riyadh that, at a height of two kilometres, would be more than twice as tall as any building ever built.—
Ian Parker,
The New Yorker,
20 Jan. 2025
-
Quite frankly, Moicano is far from being at Makhachev’s lofty height.—
Brian Mazique,
Forbes,
20 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Advertisement As the inferno swelled, flames encroached on some areas that were being considered for water shutoffs.—
Matt Hamilton,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Jan. 2025
-
Clients called on All Risk Shield before the fires reached their properties to try and protect their homes from encroaching flames.—
Megan Cerullo,
CBS News,
14 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
The deputies dragged Payne across the floor, according to the complaint.—
Julia Marnin,
Sacramento Bee,
24 Jan. 2025
-
The project, known as Stargate, dragged the OpenAI chief into a new feud with his A.I. archnemesis, Elon Musk, and caused friction with an important ally, Microsoft.—
Andrew Ross Sorkin,
New York Times,
24 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
Trump managed to navigate the obstacle posed by Melania's hat, leaning in to kiss her on the lower cheek and neck—a small but triumphant moment for the couple amid the ceremony's formality.—
Kristen Waggoner,
Newsweek,
22 Jan. 2025
-
Plus, Jones has amassed a significant injury history between the ACL tear and some neck injuries.—
Mike DeFabo,
The Athletic,
21 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
In the world of the film, which was written by Paul Zimmerman, New York has just emerged from COVID-19 lockdowns and Roger has been commissioned by an editor (Lisa Lucas) to write about its new chapter.—
Lovia Gyarkye,
The Hollywood Reporter,
27 Jan. 2025
-
In this case, one that has the Chiefs on the verge of writing an entirely new chapter.—
Vahe Gregorian,
Kansas City Star,
27 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Emma Corrin — who plays Anna Harding, best friend to Lily-Rose Depp’s Ellen Hutter — had to film a scene covered in rats that crawled on their bare chest.—
Laura Bradley,
Vulture,
17 Jan. 2025
-
The investigators will lay out a grid at the scene, typically with string, and literally crawl around on their hands and knees in search of footprints or other clues.—
Adiel Kaplan,
NBC News,
15 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near inch
Cite this Entry
“Inch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inch. Accessed 30 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share