buy

[bahy]

verb (used with object)

bought, buying 

1. to acquire the possession of, or the right to, by paying or promising to pay an equivalent, especially in money; purchase.

   Antonyms: sell

2. to acquire by exchange or concession.

   to buy favor with flattery.

3. to hire or obtain the services of.

   The Yankees bought a new center fielder.

4. to bribe.

   Most public officials cannot be bought.

5. to be the monetary or purchasing equivalent of.

   Ten dollars buys less than it used to.

6. Chiefly Theology.,  to redeem; ransom.

7. Cards.,  to draw or be dealt (a card).

   He bought an ace.

8. Informal.

   1. to accept or believe.

      I don't buy that explanation.

   2. to be deceived by.

      He bought the whole story.

verb (used without object)

bought, buying 

1. to be or become a purchaser.

noun

1. an act or instance of buying.

2. something bought or to be bought; purchase.

   That coat was a sensible buy.

3. a bargain.

   The couch was a real buy.

verb phrase

1. buy into,  to purchase a share, interest, or membership in.

   They tried to buy into the club but were not accepted.

2. buy down,  to lower or reduce (the mortgage interest rate) by means of a buy-down.

3. buy out,  to secure all of (an owner or partner's) share or interest in an enterprise.

   She bought out an established pharmacist and is doing very well.

4. buy in,  Also buy into.

   1. to buy a supply of; accumulate a stock of.

   2. to buy back one's own possession at an auction.

   3. to undertake a buy-in.

5. buy off,  to get rid of (a claim, opposition, etc.) by payment; purchase the noninterference of; bribe.

   The corrupt official bought off those who might expose him.

6. buy up,  to buy as much as one can of something or as much as is offered for sale.

   He bought up the last of the strawberries at the fruit market.

buy

/ baɪ /

verb

1. to acquire by paying or promising to pay a sum of money or the equivalent; purchase

2. to be capable of purchasing

   money can't buy love

3. to acquire by any exchange or sacrifice

   to buy time by equivocation

4. (intr) to act as a buyer

5. to bribe or corrupt; hire by or as by bribery

6. slang,  to accept as true, practical, etc

7. to purchase shares of (a company)

   we bought into General Motors

8. (tr) theol (esp of Christ) to ransom or redeem (a Christian or the soul of a Christian)

9. slang,  to be killed

noun

1. a purchase (often in the phrases good or bad buy )

Usage

The use of off after buy as in I bought this off my neighbour was formerly considered incorrect, but is now acceptable in informal contexts

Other Word Forms

• buyable adjective
• nonbuying adjective
• prebuy verb (used with object)
• rebuy verb
• unbuyable adjective
• unbuying adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of buy¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English byen, variant of byggen, buggen, Old English bycgan; cognate with Old Saxon buggjan, Gothic bugjan “to buy,” Old Norse byggja “to lend, rent”

Word History and Origins

Origin of buy¹

Old English bycgan ; related to Old Norse byggja to let out, lend, Gothic bugjan to buy

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. buy it, to get killed.

   He bought it at Dunkirk.

Synonym Study

Buy, purchase imply obtaining or acquiring property or goods for a price. Buy is the common and informal word, applying to any such transaction: to buy a house, vegetables at the market. Purchase is more formal and may connote buying on a larger scale, in a finer store, and the like: to purchase a year's supplies.

Example Sentences

Brad Smith, a crop farmer in northwest Illinois, said he welcomed the prospect of relief, after China stopped buying US soybeans in May.

From BBC

Currently on the market for £4.5m, the couple are hoping whoever buys it will keep it going and put their own Jurassic-style spin on things.

From BBC

Every year, Ventura County resident Carlos Soto buys a Liverpool Football Club jersey for his son to celebrate the start of the soccer season.

From Los Angeles Times

A music shop owner has said the surge in people buying physical-format music like vinyl has a been "lifeline".

From BBC

She said she also uses a food bank as it is difficult to buy additional food while living on the £9.95 a week she receives from the government.

From BBC

Related Words

• acquire 
• get 
• market 
• obtain 
• procure 
• purchase 
• take