mended: Chloromycetin has been the drug of choice for treat- ing typhoid fever. by day • by the day by day—during the day; in the day-time: Eurostar trains only travel by day and require a reservation. by the day —1. on a daily basis: Clients who rent by the day can be billed for phone service the day they leave. 2. with every passing day: Protests on campuses were becoming uglier by the day , and the administration cracked down hard. by half • by halves by half—1. increase or reduce smth. by fifty percent of the original amount: This move cuts by half the religious pro- gramming on ITV on Sunday. 2. far more than is satisfactory or desirable: Of course, he is a very clever politician. Too clever by half , in my opinion. by halves—do smth. imperfectly or not completely: Those in charge should not deal by halves with a question in which all classes have so deep an interest. by inches • inch by inch by inches —1. very gradually or slowly: The ship was sinking by inches ; she might remain above water an hour or more. 2. miss by a very small margin: We scrambled to get out of the way, the car missing us by inches . inch by inch—1. by small degrees or stages: When life falls apart, we are forced to rebuild it inch by inch . 2. scrutinize smth. closely; examine smth. very carefully: I have examined that cloth inch by inch ; there is not a flaw in it. by installments • in installments by installments — paid in part payments spread over a period of time: Students may pay their tuition fees in a single pay- ment or by instalments . in installments—(of publicatiions) come out in parts pub- lished over a period of time: The biography will appear in in - stallments in the April and September issues of the magazine. by occasion of something • on the occasion of something by occasion of something —(formal) because of smth.: The debate has to be postponed by occasion of the illness of one of the principle speakers. on the occasion of something—in connection with some for- mal event or celebration: This was given us as a present on the occasion of our silver wedding. by one’s own account • on one’s own account by one’s own account—according to one’s own story: She says she thought she saw him, but by her own account she could have been mistaken. on one’s own account—acting independently; without help from others: He left the company last year, and went into business on his own account . by order of someone • under the orders of someone by order of someone—according to directions given by a proper authority: By order of the Minister a special operation of police is being carried out. under the orders of someone—1. (Military) commanded by a person; being smb.’s subordinate: At the battle of Waterloo he was under the orders of Marshal Grouchy. 2. = by order of someone: In some cases it may be possible to release the prisoner on probation, but this is permitted only under the orders of the Provincial Government. by rule • by rule and line by rule—according to law, custom, or regulations: They speak by rule and by book, though they judge and determine by common-sense. by rule and line —(dated) with methodical accuracy (also: by rule and measure): Life isn’t cast in a mould—not cut out by rule and line , and that sort of thing. by succession • in succession by succession —according to the legal principle by which one person succeeds another in an inheritance, office, etc.: It seems they did not like a king by deputation but desired one by suc - cession . in succession —one after another in regular sequence: If one African country pulls out of the Commonwealth then there is a very real possibility the others will go out in succession like dominoes. by the authority of someone • on the authority of someone by the authority of someone—by reason of authority granted by the person named: The weapons were placed in the church by the authority of the governor in response to a threat the church received. on the authority of someone—having the person named as the authority for what one says: I have it on the authority of a Councilor that the rates are likely to go up in the near future. by the clock • by the time by the clock — do smth. paying a lot of attention to the time (so that one is not late): There are people who just hate to do anything by the clock . by the time—at the time that; as soon as: Eddie performed with various bands and by the time he was nineteen he left Fort Worth. Note: The expression does not correlate in meaning with the phrase by the hour—1. during considerable periods at a time: He would argue by the hour , but never for arguing sake. 2. (of wages) paid for the hours given to work: The proposal to pay by the hour instead of by the mile would lower the American railroader to the level of his Soviet counterpart. 3. (hyperbolic) very fast: Evidence is mounting by the hour that these regula- tions are being used by the President’s camp to hide behind, and rather ungracefully. by the name of • under the name of by the name of —is used of a person called by the name men- tioned: Do you know a boy by the name of David? under the name of—is used of a person known by a name different from his own: Hector Munro wrote under the name of Saki. by the seat of one’s pants • by the skin of one’s teeth by the seat of one’s pants—do smth. using experience and in- tuition rather than theory: I don’t follow recipes, but prefer to cook by the seat of my pants , as it were. by the skin of one’s teeth—only just manage to get smth. ac- complished: Making my train by the skin of my teeth , I haven’t had time to buy a paper for the journey. Cf.: it is no skin off one’s teeth—(also: it is no skin off one’s nose) 1. it is no difficulty for a person: I felt it was going to benefit some people who needed it so it was really no skin off my teeth to get involved. 2. it makes no difference to a person: That said, I opt to wear a helmet, myself. But it’s no skin off my teeth whether other folks decide to or not. by virtue of something • in virtue of something by virtue of something—by means of smth.; through the agency of smth.: It was only by virtue of his indomitable will- power that he finally succeeded. – 63 – by virtue of something