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catbert

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I am looking for an expression describing something that is happening awfully slowly, or is developing at a maddeningly slow pace. Like a story line in a book or a movie.

Is there such an idiom?
 

5jj

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At a snail's pace?
 

catbert

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Would you say that about a book or a movie, though? It seems a little too literal to me (i.e., it can be used in regards to the actual speed of some moving object).

I am, rather, talking about something that's being doled out very little at a time and at lengthy intervals.
 
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billmcd

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I am looking for an expression describing something that is happening awfully slowly, or is developing at a maddeningly slow pace. Like a story line in a book or a movie.

Is there such an idiom?

Not an idiom, but you would often see/hear "painstakingly" for that purpose.
 

JMurray

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I am, rather, talking about something that's being doled out very little at a time and at lengthy intervals.
How about "drip-feed/fed"?

"The movie was excruciatingly slow, I felt like we were being drip-fed the plot at long intervals".
"The book took ages to get going, as if the plot was on a slow drip-feed".

not a teacher
 

billmcd

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I am, rather, talking about something that's being doled out very little at a time and at lengthy intervals.
How about "drip-feed/fed"?

"The movie was excruciatingly slow, I felt like we were being drip-fed the plot at long intervals".
"The book took ages to get going, as if the plot was on a slow drip-feed".

not a teacher

I would understand the analogy, but I have never heard it used.
 

waflob

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what about 'piecemeal'?
 

catbert

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Heard another one today: as slow as molasses in January. :cool:
 

Skeptik

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Would you say that about a book or a movie, though? It seems a little too literal to me (i.e., it can be used in regards to the actual speed of some moving object).

I am, rather, talking about something that's being doled out very little at a time and at lengthy intervals.

It can be used in this way to describe a plot of a movie or book, and also literal.

Similar examples to explain that something is boring and slow:
"It's like watching paint dry." or "watching grass grow".
 

catbert

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It can be used in this way to describe a plot of a movie or book, and also literal.

Similar examples to explain that something is boring and slow:
"It's like watching paint dry." or "watching grass grow".

Yeah, I know those, it's just not what I wanted to express. I was looking for an English equivalent to a particular Russian saying, but apparently there isn't one.
 

waflob

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Similar examples to explain that something is boring and slow:
"It's like watching paint dry." or "watching grass grow".
Add "watching wood warp" to complete the hattrick :)

Going somewhat tangential here, but this reminds me of a funny joke ...
Q. What's more boring than fishing?
A. Watching fishing:lol:
 
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