QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?
Idioms about by
Origin of by
First recorded before 900; Middle English bi, be, by, Old English bī, big, be; cognate with Dutch bij, Old High German bī, German bei, Gothic bi; see be-
synonym study for by
11. By, through, with indicate agency or means of getting something done or accomplished. By is regularly used to denote the agent (person or force) in passive constructions: It is done by many; destroyed by fire. It also indicates means: Send it by airmail. With denotes the instrument (usually consciously) employed by an agent: He cut it with the scissors. Through designates particularly immediate agency or instrumentality or reason or motive: through outside aid; to yield through fear; wounded through carelessness.
Other definitions for by (2 of 2)
Also bye-.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use by in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for by (1 of 3)
Word Origin for by
Old English bī; related to Gothic bi, Old High German bī, Sanskrit abhi to, towards
British Dictionary definitions for by (2 of 3)
by2
the internet domain name for
Belarus
British Dictionary definitions for by (3 of 3)
by-
bye-
prefix
nearbystander
secondary or incidentalby-effect; by-election; by-path; by-product
Word Origin for by-
from by
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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