in stages

idiom

: in a series of separate steps rather than all at one time

The changes will be made in stages.

Examples of in stages in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Stonehenge was built on the flat lands of Salisbury Plain in stages starting 5,000 years ago, with the unique stone circle erected in the late Neolithic period about 2,500 B.C. —

Aurora Almendral, NBC News, 19 June 2024 The effort requires a political process, too, albeit a modest and realistic one that could include a long-term cease-fire in Gaza and the transfer of some more territory in stages to full Palestinian control in the West Bank. —

Martin Indyk, Foreign Affairs, 13 Oct. 2021 In another of his Chinese investments, Buffett fully unwound ownership in PetroChina Co. in 2007 by selling in stages over three months. —

Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune Asia, 18 June 2024 The chute on the Blue Origin flight deployed and was supposed to inflate in stages to reduce structural loads on the capsule. —

Stephen Clark, Ars Technica, 1 June 2024 See all Example Sentences for in stages

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'in stages.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.