by

[ bahy ]

/ baɪ /

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See synonyms for by on Thesaurus.com

preposition

near to or next to: a home by a lake.

over the surface of, through the medium of, along, or using as a route: He came by the highway. She arrived by air.

on, as a means of conveyance: They arrived by ship.

to and beyond the vicinity of; past: He went by the church.

within the extent or period of; during: by day; by night.

not later than; at or before: I usually finish work by five o'clock.

to the extent or amount of: The new house is larger than the old one by a great deal. He's taller than his sister by three inches.

from the opinion, evidence, or authority of: By his own account he was in Chicago at the time. I know him by sight.

according to; in conformity with: This is a bad movie by any standards.

with (something) at stake; on: to swear by all that is sacred.

through the agency, efficacy, work, participation, or authority of: The book was published by Random House.

from the hand, mind, invention, or creativity of: She read a poem by Emily Dickinson. The phonograph was invented by Thomas Edison.

in consequence, as a result, or on the basis of: We met by chance. We won the game by forfeit.

accompanied with or in the atmosphere of: Lovers walk by moonlight.

in treatment or support of; for: He did well by his children.

after; next after, as of the same items in a series: piece by piece; little by little.

(in multiplication) taken the number of times as that specified by the second number, or multiplier: Multiply 18 by 57.

(in measuring shapes) having an adjoining side of, as a width relative to a length: a room 10 feet by 12 feet.

(in division) separated into the number of equal parts as that specified by the second number, or divisor: Divide 99 by 33.

in terms or amounts of; in measuring units of: Apples are sold by the bushel. I'm paid by the week.

begot or born of: Eve had two sons by Adam.

(of quadrupeds) having as a sire: Equipoise II by Equipoise.

Navigation. (as used in the names of the 16 smallest points on the compass) one point toward the east, west, north, or south of N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, or NW, respectively: He sailed NE by N from Pago Pago.

into, at, or to: Come by my office this afternoon.

adverb

near; in the immediate vicinity; at hand: The school is close by.

to and beyond a point near something; past: The car drove by.

aside; away: Put your work by for the moment. Over the years, she laid by enough money to retire.

over; past: in times gone by.

by me,

(in bridge and other bidding card games) a declaration that the speaker is passing.
(in poker) a declaration that the speaker is checking: Is my pair of tens still high? By me.

adjective Also bye .

situated to one side: They came down a by passage.

secondary, incidental: It was only a by comment.

noun, plural byes.

bye¹.

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Idioms about by

by and by, in a short time; before long; presently: The clouds will disappear by and by.

by and large, in general; on the whole: By and large, there is much to be said for the new system.

by the by. bye¹ (def. 6).

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)

by-

a combining form of by: by-product; bystander; byway.

Also bye-.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use by in a sentence

The big guns—Manning and New England Patriot Tom Brady and Atlanta Falcon Matt Ryan (maybe)—have first-round byes.
Buzz Bissinger on the NFL’s No Good, Very Bad Season|Buzz Bissinger|January 2, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Parker said her good-byes, and as most of the group went back upstairs to the set, Spitzer lingered.
Eliot Spitzer's Nasty CNN Parting Shot to Kathleen Parker|Nick Summers|February 28, 2011|DAILY BEAST
I slipped away quietly, before the chapel bell had begun to ring, avoiding all 21 tender good-byes.
The Idyl of Twin Fires|Walter Prichard Eaton
"And me," the boys answered, and with good-byes were off on the winding road up the hill.
Patchwork|Anna Balmer Myers

The pleasant good-byes over, Paul and I started away in the direction of Chili, which we reached about noon.
Ocean to Ocean on Horseback|Willard Glazier
It was like a second closing of the scholastic year; the good-byes were now ringing fast and furious.
Over the Rocky Mountains to Alaska|Charles Warren Stoddard
Reluctant good-byes were given to all the professors, class-mates, and many townspeople, who were fond of him.
The Harris-Ingram Experiment|Charles E. Bolton

British Dictionary definitions for by (1 of 3)

by¹

/ (baɪ) /

preposition

used to indicate the agent after a passive verbseeds eaten by the birds

used to indicate the person responsible for a creative workthis song is by Schubert

via; throughenter by the back door

followed by a gerund to indicate a means usedhe frightened her by hiding behind the door

beside; next to; neara tree by the house

passing the position of; pasthe drove by the old cottage

not later than; beforereturn the books by Tuesday

used to indicate extent, after a comparativeit is hotter by five degrees than it was yesterday

(esp in oaths) invoking the name ofI swear by all the gods

multiplied byfour by three equals twelve

(in habitual sentences) during the passing of (esp in the phrases by day, by night)

placed between measurements of the various dimensions of somethinga plank fourteen inches by seven

adverb

nearthe house is close by

away; asidehe put some money by each week for savings

passing a point near something; pasthe drove by

Scot past; over and done withthat's a' by now

Scot aside; behind oneyou must put that by you

noun plural byes

a variant spelling of bye 1

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 Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012