by

B b

Transcription

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- UK Pronunciation
- UK IPA
- [bahy]
- /baɪ/
- /baɪ/

- US Pronunciation
- US IPA
- [bahy]
- /baɪ/

Definitions of by word

preposition by If something is done by a person or thing, that person or thing does it. 3
preposition by If you say that something such as a book, a piece of music, or a painting is by a particular person, you mean that this person wrote it or created it. 3
preposition by If you do something by a particular means, you do it using that thing. 3
preposition by If you achieve one thing by doing another thing, your action enables you to achieve the first thing. 3
preposition by You use by in phrases such as 'by chance' or 'by accident' to indicate whether or not an event was planned. 3
preposition by If someone is a particular type of person by nature, by profession, or by birth, they are that type of person because of their nature, their profession, or the family they were born into. 3

See all 142 definitions of by

Information block about the term

Origin of by

First appearance:

before 900

One of the 4% oldest English words

before 900; Middle English; Old English bī; cognate with Dutch bij, Old High German bī (German bei), Gothic bi. See be-

Historical Comparancy

Parts of speech for By

noun

adjective

verb

adverb

pronoun

preposition

conjunction

determiner

exclamation

Full grammatical hierarchy of By

by popularity

A common word. It’s meaning is known to most children of preschool age. About 100% of English native speakers know the meaning and use the word.

Most Europeans know this English word. The frequency of it’s usage is somewhere between "mom" and "screwdriver".

by usage trend in Literature

This diagram is provided by Google Ngram Viewer

Synonyms for by

adv by

away — If someone or something moves or is moved away from a place, they move or are moved so that they are no longer there. If you are away from a place, you are not in the place where people expect you to be.
through — in at one end, side, or surface and out at the other: to pass through a tunnel; We drove through Denver without stopping. Sun came through the window.
aside — If you move something aside, you move it to one side of you.
past — gone by or elapsed in time: It was a bad time, but it's all past now.
at hand — If something is at hand, near at hand, or close at hand, it is very near in place or time.

prep by

along — If something is situated along a road, river, or corridor, it is situated in it or beside it.
alongside — If one thing is alongside another thing, the first thing is next to the second.
beside — Something that is beside something else is at the side of it or next to it.
near — close; to a point or place not far away: Come near so I won't have to shout.
nearby — close at hand; not far off; adjacent; neighboring: a nearby village.

All 27 Synonyms of by

Matching words

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