"dribs and drabs" meaning in English

{
  "etymology_text": "From drib (“a drop”) and drab (“a small amount”).",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "p",
        "head": "dribs and drabs"
      },
      "expansion": "dribs and drabs pl (plural only)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English coordinated pairs",
          "parents": [
            "Coordinated pairs",
            "Terms by etymology"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English links with manual fragments",
          "parents": [
            "Links with manual fragments",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English pluralia tantum",
          "parents": [
            "Pluralia tantum",
            "Nouns",
            "Lemmas"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English positive polarity items",
          "parents": [
            "Positive polarity items",
            "Terms by semantic function"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1823, William Cobbett, “Brewing Beer”, in Cottage Economy: […], new edition, London: Printed for J. M. Cobbett, […], →OCLC, paragraph 30:",
          "text": "The tea drinking has done a great deal in bringing this nation into the state [of] misery in which it now is; and the tea drinking, which is carried on by \"dribs\" and \"drabs;\" by pence and farthings going out at a time; this miserable practice has been gradually introduced by the growing weight of the taxes on Malt and on Hops, and by the everlasting penury amongst the labourers, occasioned by the paper-money.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2020 November 18, Paul Bigland, “New infrastructure and new rolling stock”, in Rail, page 48:",
          "text": "Passengers join in dribs and drabs along the way, but at Barnsley the numbers really began to swell and by Elsecar we have several standing.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A series of negligible amounts."
      ],
      "id": "en-dribs_and_drabs-en-noun-Aarmm7wC",
      "links": [
        [
          "negligible",
          "negligible"
        ],
        [
          "amount",
          "amount"
        ]
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "bits and pieces"
        },
        {
          "word": "odds and ends"
        },
        {
          "word": "hodgepodge"
        },
        {
          "word": "drips and drabs"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "plural",
        "plural-only"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "word": "dribs and drabs"
}

{
  "etymology_text": "From drib (“a drop”) and drab (“a small amount”).",
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "p",
        "head": "dribs and drabs"
      },
      "expansion": "dribs and drabs pl (plural only)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English alliterative phrases",
        "English coordinated pairs",
        "English entries with incorrect language header",
        "English lemmas",
        "English links with manual fragments",
        "English multiword terms",
        "English nouns",
        "English pluralia tantum",
        "English positive polarity items",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Pages with 1 entry",
        "Pages with entries"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1823, William Cobbett, “Brewing Beer”, in Cottage Economy: […], new edition, London: Printed for J. M. Cobbett, […], →OCLC, paragraph 30:",
          "text": "The tea drinking has done a great deal in bringing this nation into the state [of] misery in which it now is; and the tea drinking, which is carried on by \"dribs\" and \"drabs;\" by pence and farthings going out at a time; this miserable practice has been gradually introduced by the growing weight of the taxes on Malt and on Hops, and by the everlasting penury amongst the labourers, occasioned by the paper-money.",
          "type": "quote"
        },
        {
          "ref": "2020 November 18, Paul Bigland, “New infrastructure and new rolling stock”, in Rail, page 48:",
          "text": "Passengers join in dribs and drabs along the way, but at Barnsley the numbers really began to swell and by Elsecar we have several standing.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "A series of negligible amounts."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "negligible",
          "negligible"
        ],
        [
          "amount",
          "amount"
        ]
      ],
      "synonyms": [
        {
          "word": "bits and pieces"
        },
        {
          "word": "odds and ends"
        },
        {
          "word": "hodgepodge"
        }
      ],
      "tags": [
        "plural",
        "plural-only"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "synonyms": [
    {
      "word": "drips and drabs"
    }
  ],
  "word": "dribs and drabs"
}