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By

noun
/baɪ/
Word Frequency: 3447.3

Definitions

1.nounA flying insect, of the clade Anthophila within the hymenopteran superfamily Apoidea, known for its organised societies (though only a minority have them), for collecting pollen and (in some species) producing wax and honey.
2.nounA contest, especially for spelling; see spelling bee.
"geography bee"
3.nounA community gathering to share labour, e.g. a sewing bee or a quilting bee.
4.nounA ring or torque; a bracelet.
5.nounThe name of the Latin-script letter B.
6.noun(usually in the plural) Any of the pieces of hard wood bolted to the sides of the bowsprit, to reeve the fore-topmast stays through.
7.adjectiveOut of the way, subsidiary.
8.adverbAlong a path which runs past the speaker.
"I watched as it passed by."
9.adverbIn the vicinity, near.
"The shop is hard by the High Street."
10.adverbTo or at a place, as a residence or place of business.
"I'll stop by on my way home from work."
11.adverbAside, away.
"The women spent much time after harvest putting jams by for winter and spring."
12.prepositionNear or next to.
"The mailbox is by the bus stop."
13.prepositionFrom one side of something to the other, passing close by; past.
"He ran straight by me."
14.prepositionNot later than (the given time); not later than the end of (the given time interval).
"Be back by ten o'clock!."
15.prepositionIndicates the person or thing that does or causes something: Through the action or presence of.
16.prepositionIndicates the creator of a work: Existing through the authorship etc. of.
"There are many well-known plays by William Shakespeare"
17.prepositionIndicates a means of achieving something: Involving/using the means of.
"By 'maybe' she means 'no'."
18.prepositionIndicates an authority according to which something is done.
"By the power vested in me, I now pronounce you man and wife."
19.prepositionIndicates a means of classification or organisation.
"I sorted the items by category."
20.prepositionIndicates the amount of change, difference or discrepancy
"His date of birth was wrong by ten years."
21.prepositionIn the formulae X by X and by Xs, indicates a steady progression, one X after another.
"We crawled forward by inches."
22.prepositionIndicates a referenced source: According to.
"By my reckoning, we should be nearly there."
23.prepositionUsed to separate dimensions when describing the size of something.
"It is easy to invert a 2-by-2 matrix."
24.preposition(horse breeding) Designates a horse's male parent (sire); cf. out of.
"She's a lovely little filly, by Big Lad, out of Damsel in Distress."
25.nounThe position of a person or team in a tournament or competition who draws no opponent in a particular round so advances to the next round unopposed, or is awarded points for a win in a league table; also the phantom opponent of such a person or team.
"Craig's Crew plays the bye next week."
26.nounAn extra scored when the batsmen take runs after the ball has passed the striker without hitting either the bat or the batsman.
27.nounA dwelling.
28.nounA thing not directly aimed at; something which is a secondary object of regard; an object by the way, etc.
29.nounA pass.
30.interjectionGoodbye.

Synonyms

king of insectsbee blocknearbesidealongsideadjacentcloseatviathroughusingwith

Antonyms

mainprincipal

Rhymes With

wryexemplifyrectifyhighlieapplyfortifyawry
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