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What does “brick by brick” mean in English?

“Brick by brick” means doing something slowly and carefully, one small step at a time. The image is of building a wall — you place one brick, then the next, and little by little the wall grows. In this motivational clip, the speaker says “you can build confidence brick by brick, but you can’t just find it somewhere.” This tells you that confidence is not something you find suddenly — you build it slowly, through small actions, over time.

You will usually hear this phrase when someone talks about building something big through patience and small efforts. For example: “She learned English brick by brick, practising a little every day.” Or: “They built the business brick by brick over ten years.” The phrase is often used in motivational speech, but you can also hear it in business and everyday conversation. A similar phrase is “step by step,” which also describes slow, steady progress. “Brick by brick” often feels a little more visual and deliberate — it suggests effort, not just time.