piecemealadv.n.adj.

Brit.

/ˈpiːsmiːl/, U.S.

/ˈpisˌmil/

Forms:

α. See piece n. and -meal suffix

β. late Middle English pecezmele.

Origin: Formed within English, by derivation. Etymons: piece n., -meal suffix.

Etymology: < piece n. + -meal suffix. In β forms < the plural of piece n. + -meal suffix.Corresponding to Old English styccemǣlum (see -meal suffix), but there appears to be no temporal contiguity. The pleonastic phrase by piecemeal (in which both -meal and by impart adverbial force) appears to have arisen at the same time as the adverb and to have introduced the noun use ( B.). Apprehension of piecemeal as a noun led to the appearance of plural forms ( B. II.), chiefly as the object of a preposition in a phrase but occasionally standing alone. The adverbial example in -s (see quot. 1698 at sense A. 1) is probably due to the influence of the plural noun use rather than an instance of the adverbial genitive.

A. adv.

1. One part or piece at a time; in separate pieces; by degrees, little by little.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [adverb] > in separated pieces > by pieces or piecemeal

limb-mealc1050

morsel-mealc1300

piecemealc1325

gobbetmealc1384

parcelmeala1387

plotmeala1450

gobbetly1552

threadmeal1565

piecemealwise1589

parcelwise1647

piecewise1674

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 5624 (MED) Folc to drou þat traytour, ech lime pece mele.

?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (N.Y. Acad. Med.) f. 150 (MED) Be it [sc. the stone] broken & pecemele drawen out.

c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 151 Þei etyn a man noȝt al hole but pece-mele.

a1535 T. More Hist. Richard III in Wks. (1557) 69/1 Miles Forest at sainct Martens pecemele rotted awaye.

1579 L. Tomson tr. J. Calvin Serm. Epist. S. Paule to Timothie & Titus 125/1 Now it remaineth that we looke peecemeale vnto these wordes.

1617 F. Moryson Itinerary i. 5 The stone couering him is compassed with a grate, least it should bee broken and carried away peece-meale by Passengers.

1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 289 Oft from her [sc. Etna's] Bowels massy Rocks are thrown, And shiver'd by the force come piece-meal down.

1698 J. Norris Pract. Disc. Divine Subj. IV. 424 To have taken him Piecemeals, Paragraph by Paragraph, and to have consider'd every single Objection distinctly.

1726 J. Swift Gulliver I. ii. iii. 65 Some of them seized my Cake, and carried it piece-meal away.

1773 E. Burke Corr. (1844) I. 423 The business will be done covertly and piecemeal.

1824 Lancet 1 Feb. 144/2 The intestines should be returned piece-meal to the cavity of the abdomen.

1885 Law Rep.: Chancery Div. 29 453 A party is not allowed to bring his case before the Court piecemeal.

1920 R. Macaulay Potterism i. i. 5 Young men possessed the earth; young women had to wrest what they wanted out of it piecemeal.

1992 Economist 14 Mar. 57/1 It now has a clearer idea of how the enlargement might happen: not piecemeal, but in two great waves.

2. With break, cut, tear, etc. Into pieces or fragments; piece from piece.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or breaking up into constituent parts > [adverb] > into separate parts

asundera1325

in sunderc1390

piecemeala1450

sundry1531

piecely1552

a-pieces1560

apart1608

a1450 (c1435) J. Lydgate Life SS. Edmund & Fremund (Harl.) 690 in C. Horstmann Altengl. Legenden (1881) 2nd Ser. 409 (MED) Thow maist..Me disseuere pecemeel heer and yonder.

a1500 (?a1390) J. Mirk Festial (Gough) (1905) 211 (MED) Thus scho sayde..hopyng þat þe wyld bulles wold..pece-malle al toteren Iames body.

1570 B. Googe tr. T. Kirchmeyer Popish Kingdome i. f. 7 Who rather will be peecemeale torne, than once their prince forsake.

c1580 Sir P. Sidney tr. Psalmes David ii. 21 Bruse Thou shalt and peecemeale breake These men like potshards weake.

a1625 J. Fletcher Monsieur Thomas (1639) ii. ii. sig. D4^v Rambaldo the sleeping Gyant Will rowze and rent thee piece-meale.

1664 S. Butler Hudibras: Second Pt. ii. i. 54 I'l be torn piece-meal by a Horse, Ere I'l take you for better or worse.

1712 E. Cooke Voy. S. Sea 75 Hewing them Piece-meal, and delighting in their Blood.

1796 R. Southey Joan of Arc iv. 111 How Maximin,..In such deep fury bade the tenter'd wheel Rend her life piecemeal.

1826 W. Scott Woodstock I. viii. 204 To be now pulled asunder, broken piece-meal and reduced.

1888 Scribner's Mag. Dec. 707 I took the Hyrcan tiger by the scruff And tore him piecemeal.

1991 Jrnl. Ecol. 79 805 Such birds can only eat from fruits larger than their gape if they are succulent enough to be broken piecemeal while still attached to the tree.

B. n.

I. In singular.

1. by piecemeal: one piece at a time; little by little; by degrees, in stages. Formerly also (Scottish): † at piecemeal (obsolete).

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [phrase] > piecemeal

by piecemealc1325

piece by piecea1500

piece and piecea1522

by lumps1576

in piecemeal1693

in piecemeals1715

(in or by) dribs and drabs1809

c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 4422 (MED) Is foule caroyne he broȝte & riȝt þer bi pecemele hakked it al to noȝte.

1540 R. Jonas tr. E. Roesslin Byrth of Mankynde i. f. liii Let it be cut out by pese mele.

1616 J. Maitland in Misc. Sc. Hist. Soc. (1904) 171 He choosit rather to blame, tax and charge my father..in hidlings and at peece-male.

1722 Philos. Trans. 1720–21 (Royal Soc.) 31 226 Dying daily by Piecemeal; but Heart-whole, as he express'd it.

1796 T. Jefferson Writings (1859) IV. 130 It is better to do the whole work once for all, than to be recurring to it by piece-meal.

1868 E. Edwards Life Sir W. Ralegh I. viii. 129 After previous alienations by piecemeal.

1925 T. H. Lay Foreign Service U.S. vii. 195 There has been no clearly defined policy as to which of these courses should be followed, and as a consequence, both have been attempted by piecemeal.

1991 S. J. Gould Bully for Brontosaurus xvii. 263 Flight, carnivory, and nest building could not have arisen by gradual piecemeal.

2. in piecemeal.

†a. In or into pieces or fragments. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or breaking up into constituent parts > into (small) pieces [phrase]

in (also into, on, a) piecesa1275

(all) to shiversc1275

to piecesc1300

asundera1325

to set in sunderc1325

in sunderc1390

in, into shredsc1400

in small1419

in piecemeal?a1425

in piecemealsa1470

by piecemeals1576

in shivers1589

in or into splinters1612

?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (N.Y. Acad. Med.) f. 136 Albucasis wil þat, if it may not be drawen out with ingenijs ysaid, þat..it be kutted in pecez mele [?c1425 Paris by gobatmele; L. frustatim].

1577 R. Stanyhurst Treat. Descr. Irelande iv. f. 17/2, in R. Holinshed Chron. I The fishmongers were forced to hack it in gobb[et]s, and so to cary it in peecemeale throughout the countrey.

a1593 C. Marlowe Tragicall Hist. Faustus (1604) sig. E4^v Reuolt, or Ile in peece-meale teare thy flesh.

1617 D. Gale Pyramus & Thisbe xxii Who hath seene a mournefull Doe lament For her young Kid, in peecemeale torne and rent?

1704 J. Swift Tale of Tub ix. 178 Is any Student tearing his Straw in piece-meal, Swearing and Blaspheming?

1852 B. R. Hall Frank Freeman's Barber Shop x. 172 That non-descript old fellow [sc. Winter]..was snowing, now large flakes, now spitting it out, in piece-meal.

b. One piece at a time; little by little, by degrees.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > the quality of being specific > specifically [phrase] > in detail

from point to pointa1393

in speciala1398

specialityc1485

in particularity1559

in piecemeal1561

in (the) detail1603

the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [phrase] > piecemeal

by piecemealc1325

piece by piecea1500

piece and piecea1522

by lumps1576

in piecemeal1693

in piecemeals1715

(in or by) dribs and drabs1809

1561 T. Hoby tr. B. Castiglione Courtyer iv. sig. Rr.iii^v [To] vnderstande in peecemeale whatsoeuer belongeth to his people.

1693 W. Freke Sel. Ess. xix. 114 They that can bear Pedantry in Piece-meal, will be even sick when they peruse his Masse of it.

1915 J. Huneker New Cosmopolis 320 Various bands, brass and wood-wind predominating, attack Wagner in piecemeal.

1999 R. L. Callaway Realities of Managem. vi. 90 The leaders in the trenches either implemented the directives from the top slowly and in piecemeal, or just ignored them entirely.

II. In plural.

3. in piecemeals.

†a. = B. 2a. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or breaking up into constituent parts > into (small) pieces [phrase]

in (also into, on, a) piecesa1275

(all) to shiversc1275

to piecesc1300

asundera1325

to set in sunderc1325

in sunderc1390

in, into shredsc1400

in small1419

in piecemeal?a1425

in piecemealsa1470

by piecemeals1576

in shivers1589

in or into splinters1612

a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll.) 383 I had rathir be hewyn in pyese-mealys.

1751 T. Pellow Hist. Long Captivity 344 They would no Doubt have soon hauled me in Piecemeals.

1870 E. Kellogg Ark Elm Island 22 She was to be sold with her contents, or broken up and disposed of in piece-meals.

b. = B. 2b.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [phrase] > piecemeal

by piecemealc1325

piece by piecea1500

piece and piecea1522

by lumps1576

in piecemeal1693

in piecemeals1715

(in or by) dribs and drabs1809

1715 Life Oliver Cromwel 128 After that in Part and piecemeals he had deny'd the Pomps and vanities of this wicked world.

1860 J. A. Eames Budget Closed lxxviii. 282 His chair and bedstead are among ‘the things that were’, having been carried away in piecemeals by visitors, but his table is there still.

1908 Atlanta Constit. 27 Sept. 2 b/3 Shall our country be destroyed in piecemeals, or shall we administer the dose in a lump?

1990 Econ. Rev. (Nexis) July 38 As such the trade and industry circles of this country are confidently expecting mini-budgets later on in piecemeals.

†4. by piecemeals= by piecemeal at sense B. 1. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or breaking up into constituent parts > into (small) pieces [phrase]

in (also into, on, a) piecesa1275

(all) to shiversc1275

to piecesc1300

asundera1325

to set in sunderc1325

in sunderc1390

in, into shredsc1400

in small1419

in piecemeal?a1425

in piecemealsa1470

by piecemeals1576

in shivers1589

in or into splinters1612

1576 G. Whetstone Arbour of Vertue 118 in Rocke of Regard She faring, as shee likt his talke, by peece meales gan to yeeld.

1642 T. Goodwin Zervbbabels Encouragement 17 That..perfection of light (which the Apostolicall times had)..by piece-meals and degrees.

1688 R. Blackbourne Clitie iii. 183 Can she have any Vengeance yet in store? Or if she has, Why does she thus by piece-meals deal it out?

1762 L. Sterne Life Tristram Shandy V. iii. 30 Those..are falling..by piece-meals to decay.

1826 J. Kerr Rip Van Winkle i. iii. 33 That's a fact—always do—so have no intention of stopping to be stewed to death by piece-meals.

1870 N. Adams Life John Eliot 20 Flaying men alive with the shells of fishes, cutting off the points and members of others by piecemeals.

†5. Small pieces, portions, or fragments. Obsolete.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [noun]

deala800

doleOE

endOE

lotlOE

partyc1300

parta1325

specec1330

portiona1387

piecec1400

proportion1443

parcellingc1449

faction1577

piecemeal1603

proportional1856

1603 E. Wilkinson Isahacs Inheritance p. ix Nere let this Ile to peece-meales be disioynted, As oft in former ages it hath bene.

a1635 R. Holme Let. in Chetham Misc. (1875) V. 28 I am very loth to send vp to you pees males of a fee.

1651 R. Vaughan Let. in R. Parr Life J. Usher (1686) Coll. cclxi. 562 To register any thing to the purpose..that I could come by, (some few piecemeals excepted).

1657 W. Rand tr. P. Gassendi Mirrour of Nobility 294 Being torn into piece-meales.

1697 W. Wynne et al. tr. Caradoc of Llancarvan Hist. Wales 112 With him fell the Glory and Grandeur of the Principality of South-Wales, being afterwards..divided into several parts and piece-meals among these Norman Captains.

1817 L. Hunt in Examiner 28 Dec. 826/1 In proportion as his work is good,..this cutting up into piece-meals must inevitably spoil it.

C. adj.

Consisting of or done in pieces or instalments; gradual; fragmentary.

ΘΚΠ

the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [adjective] > consisting or done in pieces

piecemeal1593

retail1664

1593 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia iii. sig. Cc He did with a broken peece-meale speach..remember the mishaps of his youth.

1609 T. Heywood Troia Britanica vii. 158 Whilst he gathers vp with watry eyes His peece-meale body, she in safety flies.

1713 W. Derham Physico-theol. To Rdr. sig. A4^v None..have done it otherwise than in a transient, piece-meal Manner.

1768 A. Tucker Light of Nature Pursued II. iii. xxix. 429 What tortures and piecemeal executions have not been practised by tyrants and persecutors.

1851 Times 28 Jan. 4/5 We are not at all desirous of complaining of the habit of piecemeal reform.

1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest IV. xviii. 184 Our history just at this time has to be put together in so piecemeal a way.

1944 Social Res. 11 99 The fundamental laws, then, would not be piecemeal laws but structural characteristics of the whole.

1993 N.Y. Times 19 Dec. i. 28/4 The Clinton administration seeks to turn away from natural resource management by piecemeal solutions.

This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2006; most recently modified version published online June 2022).

单词	piecemeal
释义	piecemealv. Brit. /ˈpiːsmiːl/, U.S. /ˈpisˌmil/ Forms: see piecemeal adv., n., and adj. Origin: Formed within English, by conversion. Etymon: piecemeal adv. Etymology: < piecemeal adv. transitive. To divide into small pieces; to dismember. Frequently with out: to distribute in small pieces or fragments. Also figurative. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > action of dividing or divided condition > divide [verb (transitive)] to-shedc888 to-dealeOE dealc950 twemea1023 to-doOE to-shiftc1122 brittenc1175 sunderc1230 depart1297 parta1300 twain15.. dividec1380 minisha1382 dressc1410 dissever1417 sever1435 quarterc1440 distinct1526 videc1540 disperse1548 several1570 separate1581 dirempt1587 distinguish1609 piecemeal1611 discrete1624 dispart1629 slit1645 parcel1652 canton1653 tripartite1653 split1707 carve1711 scind1869 1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Emmenuiser, to make small, to peecemeale, to reduce into little parcels, or peeces. 1632 T. Heywood Iron Age i. v. i, in Wks. (1874) III. 338 My seuen-fold Targe With thousand gashes peece-meald from mine arme. 1655 W. Gurnall Christian in Armour: 1st Pt. 21 The glory of the work shall not be crumbled, and piece-meal'd out, some to God, and some to the creature. 1749 H. Fielding Tom Jones V. xiii. i. 3 The heavy, unread, Folio Lump, which long had dozed on the dusty Shelf, piece-mealed into Numbers, runs nimbly through the Nation. View more context for this quotation 1779 H. Man Trifler 159 I should..have piecemealed them out more horribly in some future disastrous chapter. 1882 R. Lowell Let. 8 May (1904) III. 98 I am piecemealed here with so many things to do. 1888 F. T. Elworthy W. Somerset Word-bk. at Piece-meal I've a-tookt the zix acres o' Mr. Baker, and I be gwain to piece-meal'n out in garden splats. 1975 Washington Post 6 Sept. a2/4 To announce even the topic of the hearings would result in ‘prematurely piecemealing the information out’. 2003 Las Vegas (Nevada) Rev.-Jrnl. (Nexis) 15 May 1 d We need to stop piecemealing what we are going to allow and not allow on the Internet. Derivatives ˈpiecemealed adj. ΚΠ 1654 Mercurius Politicus No. 194. 3304 Sir you have here my piecemeal'd relations... I hope you will pick sence out of my lines. 1718 Entertainer No. 21. 144 The Piece-meal'd Quarters..exposed to the four Corners of the Earth. 1970 W. T. Divale & J. Joseph I Lived inside Campus Revolution p. xviii Piecemealed and improvised as was the philosophy of the New Left. 2002 Buffalo (N.Y.) News (Nexis) 18 Dec. b1 We were able to take a fragmented and piecemealed structure and concentrate the expertise. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022). piecemealadv.n.adj. Brit. /ˈpiːsmiːl/, U.S. /ˈpisˌmil/ Forms: α. See piece n. and -meal suffix β. late Middle English pecezmele. Origin: Formed within English, by derivation. Etymons: piece n., -meal suffix. Etymology: < piece n. + -meal suffix. In β forms < the plural of piece n. + -meal suffix.Corresponding to Old English styccemǣlum (see -meal suffix), but there appears to be no temporal contiguity. The pleonastic phrase by piecemeal (in which both -meal and by impart adverbial force) appears to have arisen at the same time as the adverb and to have introduced the noun use ( B.). Apprehension of piecemeal as a noun led to the appearance of plural forms ( B. II.), chiefly as the object of a preposition in a phrase but occasionally standing alone. The adverbial example in -s (see quot. 1698 at sense A. 1) is probably due to the influence of the plural noun use rather than an instance of the adverbial genitive. A. adv. 1. One part or piece at a time; in separate pieces; by degrees, little by little. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [adverb] > in separated pieces > by pieces or piecemeal limb-mealc1050 morsel-mealc1300 piecemealc1325 gobbetmealc1384 parcelmeala1387 plotmeala1450 gobbetly1552 threadmeal1565 piecemealwise1589 parcelwise1647 piecewise1674 c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 5624 (MED) Folc to drou þat traytour, ech lime pece mele. ?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (N.Y. Acad. Med.) f. 150 (MED) Be it [sc. the stone] broken & pecemele drawen out. c1450 Jacob's Well (1900) 151 Þei etyn a man noȝt al hole but pece-mele. a1535 T. More Hist. Richard III in Wks. (1557) 69/1 Miles Forest at sainct Martens pecemele rotted awaye. 1579 L. Tomson tr. J. Calvin Serm. Epist. S. Paule to Timothie & Titus 125/1 Now it remaineth that we looke peecemeale vnto these wordes. 1617 F. Moryson Itinerary i. 5 The stone couering him is compassed with a grate, least it should bee broken and carried away peece-meale by Passengers. 1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Æneis iii, in tr. Virgil Wks. 289 Oft from her [sc. Etna's] Bowels massy Rocks are thrown, And shiver'd by the force come piece-meal down. 1698 J. Norris Pract. Disc. Divine Subj. IV. 424 To have taken him Piecemeals, Paragraph by Paragraph, and to have consider'd every single Objection distinctly. 1726 J. Swift Gulliver I. ii. iii. 65 Some of them seized my Cake, and carried it piece-meal away. 1773 E. Burke Corr. (1844) I. 423 The business will be done covertly and piecemeal. 1824 Lancet 1 Feb. 144/2 The intestines should be returned piece-meal to the cavity of the abdomen. 1885 Law Rep.: Chancery Div. 29 453 A party is not allowed to bring his case before the Court piecemeal. 1920 R. Macaulay Potterism i. i. 5 Young men possessed the earth; young women had to wrest what they wanted out of it piecemeal. 1992 Economist 14 Mar. 57/1 It now has a clearer idea of how the enlargement might happen: not piecemeal, but in two great waves. 2. With break, cut, tear, etc. Into pieces or fragments; piece from piece. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or breaking up into constituent parts > [adverb] > into separate parts asundera1325 in sunderc1390 piecemeala1450 sundry1531 piecely1552 a-pieces1560 apart1608 a1450 (c1435) J. Lydgate Life SS. Edmund & Fremund (Harl.) 690 in C. Horstmann Altengl. Legenden (1881) 2nd Ser. 409 (MED) Thow maist..Me disseuere pecemeel heer and yonder. a1500 (?a1390) J. Mirk Festial (Gough) (1905) 211 (MED) Thus scho sayde..hopyng þat þe wyld bulles wold..pece-malle al toteren Iames body. 1570 B. Googe tr. T. Kirchmeyer Popish Kingdome i. f. 7 Who rather will be peecemeale torne, than once their prince forsake. c1580 Sir P. Sidney tr. Psalmes David ii. 21 Bruse Thou shalt and peecemeale breake These men like potshards weake. a1625 J. Fletcher Monsieur Thomas (1639) ii. ii. sig. D4^v Rambaldo the sleeping Gyant Will rowze and rent thee piece-meale. 1664 S. Butler Hudibras: Second Pt. ii. i. 54 I'l be torn piece-meal by a Horse, Ere I'l take you for better or worse. 1712 E. Cooke Voy. S. Sea 75 Hewing them Piece-meal, and delighting in their Blood. 1796 R. Southey Joan of Arc iv. 111 How Maximin,..In such deep fury bade the tenter'd wheel Rend her life piecemeal. 1826 W. Scott Woodstock I. viii. 204 To be now pulled asunder, broken piece-meal and reduced. 1888 Scribner's Mag. Dec. 707 I took the Hyrcan tiger by the scruff And tore him piecemeal. 1991 Jrnl. Ecol. 79 805 Such birds can only eat from fruits larger than their gape if they are succulent enough to be broken piecemeal while still attached to the tree. B. n. I. In singular. 1. by piecemeal: one piece at a time; little by little; by degrees, in stages. Formerly also (Scottish): † at piecemeal (obsolete). ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [phrase] > piecemeal by piecemealc1325 piece by piecea1500 piece and piecea1522 by lumps1576 in piecemeal1693 in piecemeals1715 (in or by) dribs and drabs1809 c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) 4422 (MED) Is foule caroyne he broȝte & riȝt þer bi pecemele hakked it al to noȝte. 1540 R. Jonas tr. E. Roesslin Byrth of Mankynde i. f. liii Let it be cut out by pese mele. 1616 J. Maitland in Misc. Sc. Hist. Soc. (1904) 171 He choosit rather to blame, tax and charge my father..in hidlings and at peece-male. 1722 Philos. Trans. 1720–21 (Royal Soc.) 31 226 Dying daily by Piecemeal; but Heart-whole, as he express'd it. 1796 T. Jefferson Writings (1859) IV. 130 It is better to do the whole work once for all, than to be recurring to it by piece-meal. 1868 E. Edwards Life Sir W. Ralegh I. viii. 129 After previous alienations by piecemeal. 1925 T. H. Lay Foreign Service U.S. vii. 195 There has been no clearly defined policy as to which of these courses should be followed, and as a consequence, both have been attempted by piecemeal. 1991 S. J. Gould Bully for Brontosaurus xvii. 263 Flight, carnivory, and nest building could not have arisen by gradual piecemeal. 2. in piecemeal. †a. In or into pieces or fragments. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or breaking up into constituent parts > into (small) pieces [phrase] in (also into, on, a) piecesa1275 (all) to shiversc1275 to piecesc1300 asundera1325 to set in sunderc1325 in sunderc1390 in, into shredsc1400 in small1419 in piecemeal?a1425 in piecemealsa1470 by piecemeals1576 in shivers1589 in or into splinters1612 ?a1425 tr. Guy de Chauliac Grande Chirurgie (N.Y. Acad. Med.) f. 136 Albucasis wil þat, if it may not be drawen out with ingenijs ysaid, þat..it be kutted in pecez mele [?c1425 Paris by gobatmele; L. frustatim]. 1577 R. Stanyhurst Treat. Descr. Irelande iv. f. 17/2, in R. Holinshed Chron. I The fishmongers were forced to hack it in gobb[et]s, and so to cary it in peecemeale throughout the countrey. a1593 C. Marlowe Tragicall Hist. Faustus (1604) sig. E4^v Reuolt, or Ile in peece-meale teare thy flesh. 1617 D. Gale Pyramus & Thisbe xxii Who hath seene a mournefull Doe lament For her young Kid, in peecemeale torne and rent? 1704 J. Swift Tale of Tub ix. 178 Is any Student tearing his Straw in piece-meal, Swearing and Blaspheming? 1852 B. R. Hall Frank Freeman's Barber Shop x. 172 That non-descript old fellow [sc. Winter]..was snowing, now large flakes, now spitting it out, in piece-meal. b. One piece at a time; little by little, by degrees. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > kind or sort > individual character or quality > the quality of being specific > specifically [phrase] > in detail from point to pointa1393 in speciala1398 specialityc1485 in particularity1559 in piecemeal1561 in (the) detail1603 the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [phrase] > piecemeal by piecemealc1325 piece by piecea1500 piece and piecea1522 by lumps1576 in piecemeal1693 in piecemeals1715 (in or by) dribs and drabs1809 1561 T. Hoby tr. B. Castiglione Courtyer iv. sig. Rr.iii^v [To] vnderstande in peecemeale whatsoeuer belongeth to his people. 1693 W. Freke Sel. Ess. xix. 114 They that can bear Pedantry in Piece-meal, will be even sick when they peruse his Masse of it. 1915 J. Huneker New Cosmopolis 320 Various bands, brass and wood-wind predominating, attack Wagner in piecemeal. 1999 R. L. Callaway Realities of Managem. vi. 90 The leaders in the trenches either implemented the directives from the top slowly and in piecemeal, or just ignored them entirely. II. In plural. 3. in piecemeals. †a. = B. 2a. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or breaking up into constituent parts > into (small) pieces [phrase] in (also into, on, a) piecesa1275 (all) to shiversc1275 to piecesc1300 asundera1325 to set in sunderc1325 in sunderc1390 in, into shredsc1400 in small1419 in piecemeal?a1425 in piecemealsa1470 by piecemeals1576 in shivers1589 in or into splinters1612 a1470 T. Malory Morte Darthur (Winch. Coll.) 383 I had rathir be hewyn in pyese-mealys. 1751 T. Pellow Hist. Long Captivity 344 They would no Doubt have soon hauled me in Piecemeals. 1870 E. Kellogg Ark Elm Island 22 She was to be sold with her contents, or broken up and disposed of in piece-meals. b. = B. 2b. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [phrase] > piecemeal by piecemealc1325 piece by piecea1500 piece and piecea1522 by lumps1576 in piecemeal1693 in piecemeals1715 (in or by) dribs and drabs1809 1715 Life Oliver Cromwel 128 After that in Part and piecemeals he had deny'd the Pomps and vanities of this wicked world. 1860 J. A. Eames Budget Closed lxxviii. 282 His chair and bedstead are among ‘the things that were’, having been carried away in piecemeals by visitors, but his table is there still. 1908 Atlanta Constit. 27 Sept. 2 b/3 Shall our country be destroyed in piecemeals, or shall we administer the dose in a lump? 1990 Econ. Rev. (Nexis) July 38 As such the trade and industry circles of this country are confidently expecting mini-budgets later on in piecemeals. †4. by piecemeals= by piecemeal at sense B. 1. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > mutual relation of parts to whole > separation > separation or breaking up into constituent parts > into (small) pieces [phrase] in (also into, on, a) piecesa1275 (all) to shiversc1275 to piecesc1300 asundera1325 to set in sunderc1325 in sunderc1390 in, into shredsc1400 in small1419 in piecemeal?a1425 in piecemealsa1470 by piecemeals1576 in shivers1589 in or into splinters1612 1576 G. Whetstone Arbour of Vertue 118 in Rocke of Regard She faring, as shee likt his talke, by peece meales gan to yeeld. 1642 T. Goodwin Zervbbabels Encouragement 17 That..perfection of light (which the Apostolicall times had)..by piece-meals and degrees. 1688 R. Blackbourne Clitie iii. 183 Can she have any Vengeance yet in store? Or if she has, Why does she thus by piece-meals deal it out? 1762 L. Sterne Life Tristram Shandy V. iii. 30 Those..are falling..by piece-meals to decay. 1826 J. Kerr Rip Van Winkle i. iii. 33 That's a fact—always do—so have no intention of stopping to be stewed to death by piece-meals. 1870 N. Adams Life John Eliot 20 Flaying men alive with the shells of fishes, cutting off the points and members of others by piecemeals. †5. Small pieces, portions, or fragments. Obsolete. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [noun] deala800 doleOE endOE lotlOE partyc1300 parta1325 specec1330 portiona1387 piecec1400 proportion1443 parcellingc1449 faction1577 piecemeal1603 proportional1856 1603 E. Wilkinson Isahacs Inheritance p. ix Nere let this Ile to peece-meales be disioynted, As oft in former ages it hath bene. a1635 R. Holme Let. in Chetham Misc. (1875) V. 28 I am very loth to send vp to you pees males of a fee. 1651 R. Vaughan Let. in R. Parr Life J. Usher (1686) Coll. cclxi. 562 To register any thing to the purpose..that I could come by, (some few piecemeals excepted). 1657 W. Rand tr. P. Gassendi Mirrour of Nobility 294 Being torn into piece-meales. 1697 W. Wynne et al. tr. Caradoc of Llancarvan Hist. Wales 112 With him fell the Glory and Grandeur of the Principality of South-Wales, being afterwards..divided into several parts and piece-meals among these Norman Captains. 1817 L. Hunt in Examiner 28 Dec. 826/1 In proportion as his work is good,..this cutting up into piece-meals must inevitably spoil it. C. adj. Consisting of or done in pieces or instalments; gradual; fragmentary. ΘΚΠ the world > relative properties > wholeness > incompleteness > part of whole > [adjective] > consisting or done in pieces piecemeal1593 retail1664 1593 Sir P. Sidney Arcadia iii. sig. Cc He did with a broken peece-meale speach..remember the mishaps of his youth. 1609 T. Heywood Troia Britanica vii. 158 Whilst he gathers vp with watry eyes His peece-meale body, she in safety flies. 1713 W. Derham Physico-theol. To Rdr. sig. A4^v None..have done it otherwise than in a transient, piece-meal Manner. 1768 A. Tucker Light of Nature Pursued II. iii. xxix. 429 What tortures and piecemeal executions have not been practised by tyrants and persecutors. 1851 Times 28 Jan. 4/5 We are not at all desirous of complaining of the habit of piecemeal reform. 1871 E. A. Freeman Hist. Norman Conquest IV. xviii. 184 Our history just at this time has to be put together in so piecemeal a way. 1944 Social Res. 11 99 The fundamental laws, then, would not be piecemeal laws but structural characteristics of the whole. 1993 N.Y. Times 19 Dec. i. 28/4 The Clinton administration seeks to turn away from natural resource management by piecemeal solutions. This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2006; most recently modified version published online June 2022). < v.1611adv.n.adj.c1325
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piecemealv.

Derivatives

piecemealadv.n.adj.