leaps and bounds

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leaps and bounds pl (plural only)

1. (idiomatic) Dramatic improvements.
   • 1892 [April], A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “Adventures of Sherlock Holmes. X.—The Adventure of the Noble Bachelor.”, in Geo[rge] Newnes, editor, The Strand Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly, volume III (January to June), number [16], London: George Newnes, Limited, […], page 390, column 2:

     “And how did he make his money?”
     “In mining. He had nothing a few years ago. Then he struck gold, invested it, and came up by leaps and bounds.”

   • 1990 March 26, The Larry King Show, via CNN:

     […] although they have made leaps and bounds in some areas, they're still using some of the same medications that they used on my brother 31 years ago with this particular disease […]

• In the US the phrase by leaps and bounds is much more common than in leaps and bounds, which is somewhat preferred in the UK.

leaps and bounds (not comparable)

1. (idiomatic) Considerably; significantly.

   Our company has progressed leaps and bounds this year.

   • 2003, Robyn Lim, The geopolitics of East Asia: the search for equilibrium:

     […] the Afghan War showed that America's ability to project power from a distance had improved leaps and bounds since the 1990 Gulf War.