| 释义 |
by fits and starts
Thesaurus| Adv. | 1.by fits and starts - intermittently; "he worked on his book by fits and starts" |
Translationsfit2 (fit) noun1. a sudden attack of illness, especially epilepsy. She suffers from fits. 痙攣 痉挛2. something which happens as suddenly as this. a fit of laughter/coughing. 一陣陣 一阵阵by fits and starts irregularly; often stopping and starting again. He did his work by fits and starts. 間歇地 间歇地by fits and starts
by fits and startsIn short, inconsistent, and irregular intervals, as of motion or progress. The car was almost completely broken down, but, by fits and starts, we were able to get it to a mechanic. A: "How's the essay coming along?" B: "Oh, by fits and starts."See also: and, by, fit, startfits and starts, byAlso, in fits and starts. With irregular intervals of action and inaction, spasmodically, as in The campaign is proceeding by fits and starts. This expression began in the late 1500s as by fits, the noun fit meaning a "paroxysm" or "seizure"; starts was added about a century later. See also: and, by, fitfits and starts, byIn bursts of activity, spasmodically. The fits portion of this expression dates from the sixteenth century, and the pairing with starts came soon afterward, in the early seventeenth century. “Thou hast these things only by fits and starts,” wrote Robert Sanderson in one of his Sermons (1620). John Ray’s proverb collection of 1670 put it slightly differently: “By fits and girds, as an ague takes a goose.”See also: and, by, fitEncyclopediaSeefitFinancialSeeFit |