by-product

[bahy-prod-uhkt]

noun

1. a secondary or incidental product, as in a process of manufacture.

2. the result of another action, often unforeseen or unintended.

by-product

noun

1. a secondary or incidental product of a manufacturing process

2. a side effect

by-product

1. Something produced in the process of making something else. When plants produce carbohydrates by photosynthesis, oxygen is released as a by-product. Asphalt and paraffin are by-products of the process of refining crude oil into gasoline.

Word History and Origins

Origin of by-product¹

First recorded in 1900–05

Example Sentences

“Belief in a novel is, for me, a by-product of a certain kind of sentence,” Smith observes.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The company said the on-year rise in profitability was due to higher zinc in concentrate sales volumes, a rise in base-metal prices, and by-product revenues combined with significantly lower copper smelter processing charges.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

The protein trend has been especially driven by the expanded availability of protein from whey, typically a by-product of cheese production.

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It adds that interference occurs primarily near conflict zones as a by-product of military activity, rather than necessarily being a deliberate act.

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Once regarded as a by-product in cheese-making, whey protein has become increasingly popular for use in smoothies, food and for people using injectable weight loss medications to prevent muscle wastage.

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Related Words

• outgrowth