lobby

American  

[lob-ee] / ˈlɒb i /

noun

• lobbies
  plural

1. an entrance hall, corridor, or vestibule, as in a public building, often serving as an anteroom; foyer.

2. a large public room or hall adjacent to a legislative chamber.

3. a group of persons who work or conduct a campaign to influence members of a legislature to vote according to the group's special interest.

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verb (used without object)

• lobbies,
  present (3rd person singular)
• lobbied,
  past participle,  past
• lobbying
  present participle

1. to solicit or try to influence the votes of members of a legislative body.

verb (used with object)

• lobbies,
  present (3rd person singular)
• lobbied,
  past participle,  past
• lobbying
  present participle

1. to try to influence the actions of (public officials, especially legislators).

2. to urge or procure the passage of (a bill), by lobbying.

lobby British  

/ ˈlɒbɪ /

noun

1. a room or corridor used as an entrance hall, vestibule, etc

2. a hall in a legislative building used for meetings between the legislators and members of the public

3. Also called: division lobby. one of two corridors in a legislative building in which members vote

4. a group of persons who attempt to influence legislators on behalf of a particular interest

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verb

1. to attempt to influence (legislators, etc) in the formulation of policy

2. (intr) to act in the manner of a lobbyist

3. (tr) to apply pressure or influence for the passage of (a bill, etc)

lobby Cultural  

1. A group whose members share certain goals and work to bring about the passage, modification, or defeat of laws that affect these goals. Lobbies (also called interest groups or pressure groups) can be long-standing (such as minority groups struggling to have their civil rights guaranteed) or ad hoc (such as a community threatened by proposed construction of a nuclear power plant). Lobbies may use grassroots methods, such as local rallies and campaigns, to build support for their cause and often employ professional lobbyists, who testify before congressional committees and approach policymakers in all government branches. Powerful lobbies, such as the AFL-CIO and the American Legion, with millions of members, have succeeded in establishing influence in Washington, D.C.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• lobbyer
  noun
• unlobbied
  adjective
• unlobbying
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• lobbies
  plural

Participles

• lobbying
  present
• lobbied
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• lobby
  simple
• lobbies
  simple
• have lobbied
  perfect
• has lobbied
  perfect
• am lobbying
  progressive
• are lobbying
  progressive
• is lobbying
  progressive
• have been lobbying
  perfect progressive
• has been lobbying
  perfect progressive

Past

• lobbied
  simple
• had lobbied
  perfect
• was lobbying
  progressive
• were lobbying
  progressive
• had been lobbying
  perfect progressive

Future

• will lobby
  simple
• will have lobbied
  perfect
• will be lobbying
  progressive
• will have been lobbying
  perfect progressive

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Etymology

Origin of lobby

1545–55; < Medieval Latin lobia, laubia covered way < Old High German *laubia (later lauba ) arbor, derivative of laub leaf

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Explanation

A lobby is a large waiting room or reception area. If you're waiting for an appointment in a lobby, maybe you'll get lucky and find a good magazine or even a peppermint candy. You'll find a lot of people hanging around in a lobby — which is basically what it’s there for. A lobby is where you meet your friend at the hotel or catch the elevator for your interview. The idea of the "political lobby group" came from the large entrance halls of the legislature, where people hung around trying to influence the lawmakers. So the next time your class tries to lobby your teacher for extra credit, he can thank the halls of Congress.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

lobby lobbies lobbied lobbying

In 2019, as Hong Kong saw massive and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests, Wong was part of a delegation to the United States to lobby for the bill, which eventually passed.

From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026

Attias stood in the hotel lobby, whose design leans toward gray, black, white, earth tones and chrome.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026

Patrick Martin, the head of France's Medef business lobby group, on Tuesday accused the state of having "failed" during the urban unrest that hit at least 3,000 businesses, according to preliminary estimates.

From Barron's ● Oct. 20, 2026

“I salute that every morning,” he told members of the WSJ CEO Council, referring to the flag that is literally blowing in the lobby of JPMorgan Chase’s monumental new New York skyscraper.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 19, 2026

So he went back to the lobby and down a different corridor, this one full of offices.

From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman

Joint lead bookrunner and stabilization agent Morgan Stanley adorned its lobbies, elevator banks and turnstiles with SpaceX logos and pictures of Mars.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 31, 2026

The pair exchanged words in the division lobbies afterwards, with a Labour source claiming that Badenoch told Phillipson: "You are spiteful, I'm never going to stop talking about how spiteful you are."

From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026

From identical assigned cubicles to domineering executive suites to vast entrance lobbies apparently designed to remind you that you aren’t insignificant, the message is clear.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026

By the 1930s, popping machines were increasingly becoming fixtures in lobbies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 13, 2026

Booth was a creature of the city and its fancy hotel lobbies, saloons, oyster bars, and gaslit shadows.

From "Chasing Lincoln's Killer" by James L. Swanson

As a missionary, parish priest and later as bishop in northern Peru he ministered to the poor, denounced the excesses of power and lobbied for action on climate change.

From Barron's ● Nov. 5, 2026

He had shamelessly lobbied Washington for the chief-justice seat.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026

“Even the contractors have lobbied with us to keep TPS extending, because they would lose a lot of manpower in this area,” she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

His brother Gurpreet Singh Johal - who has lobbied successive governments calling for his release - said the decision to grant bail had been a "really important milestone".

From BBC ● Oct. 1, 2026

He successfully lobbied for Washington to head the Continental Army and personally selected Jefferson to draft the Declaration of Independence, two strategic decisions designed to assure Virginia’s support for the cause.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

Such lobbying was held up as evidence of Wong calling for sanctions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 5, 2026

“I think it’s not going to be purely ‘you gave money to the ballroom,’” said Mr. Elmendorf, who is part of a Beltway lobbying shop.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 25, 2026

It added that none of the money would be used for lobbying or political donations.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 20, 2026

The new entity will be structured as a wholly owned LLC, rather than a traditional nonprofit, and won’t be used for lobbying or political donations, Anthropic said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 18, 2026

“Creditors love the term the ‘democratization of credit,’ ” said Travis B. Plunkett, the legislative director of the Consumer Federation of America, a consumer lobbying group.

From "Class Matters" by The New York Times

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Related Words

• campaign for
• persuade
• politick
• press
• promote
• push
• request
• solicit
• sway
• urge

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