here and there
138
1.7
- idiom
:
aquí y allá
- Everyone thinks that there are but few wandering here and there in the desert.
- few shops here and there
- found here and there
- see here and there
It hires crew here and there and they come on board.
- It hires crew here and there and they come on board.
- A little more give here and there, see, we'll see.
- So you'll see him citing scripture here and there very often.
- So they send air bombs down here and there to try to chart the ocean floor.
- So getting a little bit of yardage here and there at a discount will work in your favor.
- Has to be something between here and there that's involved.
- You know, it's just like letting a couple fly here and there where you feel like you going?
Examples
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But I'm going to be popping in here and there and providing my commentary.
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You can find interesting shops here and there in the old part of the city.
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Obviously, you guys break up here and there during high school.
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We have some evidence here and there.
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There have been guys here and there.
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A few animals missing here and there.
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Little things here and there.
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And my guess was that they would turn up eventually, here and there, in the coming months.
Academic text (1998) -
I'm going on dates here and there, meeting people.
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There were the little lights on tents here and there among the trees, but it was so dark.
Academic text (1999)
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To go to many different places
283
4.8
In a confused, disorganized way with things or thoughts scattered
2
4.3
In many places at the same time
1
9.3
In many different directions and places
Antonyms
How Widespread
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'in various places' is directly and transparently derived from combining the locative adverbs 'here' and 'there' with the coordinating 'and', which signals multiple or scattered locations. This coordinated locative pattern is cross-linguistically common (e.g., Spanish 'aquí y allá') and follows a straightforward compositional logic that a B1 learner knowing the constituents will readily infer.
Etymology
Here and there comes from a simple picture: things or people are in some places and in other places, not all together, like books scattered across a floor or people walking around without a plan. So it now means 'in various places' or moving 'from one place to another without a fixed path'.