by-

See also: Appendix:Variations of "by"

English

Alternative forms

• bye-

Etymology 1

From Middle English by (“town”), of North Germanic origin, from Old Norse býr (“dwelling, town”), from Proto-Germanic *būwiz (“dwelling”). Cognate with Danish by (“town”). More at bower.

Prefix

by-

1. (now mostly non-productive) Town or city.

   bylaw

Etymology 2

Partly from a combining form of by (“by, near, around”), and partly continuing Middle English bi-, by-, from Old English bī- (“by, near, around”), from Proto-Germanic *bi- (“by-”). Cognate with Dutch bij-, German bei-.

Prefix

by-

1. Nearness or roundaboutness.

   bystander, bypass

2. Secondary, incidental, or parallel to.

   by-product, byform, by-path

Derived terms

English terms prefixed with by-

Translations

nearness or roundaboutness

• Hungarian: (roundaboutness) kerülő- (hu), (nearness) melletti (hu), közeli (hu)

secondary, incidental, or parallel to

• Hungarian: mellék- (hu), mellékes (hu), másodlagos (hu), köztes (hu), időközi (hu)

Anagrams

• YB, Yb, yb

Middle English

Etymology 1

Inherited from Old English bī-, from bī (Middle English by); compare bi-.

Alternative forms

• bi-

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbiː-/

Prefix

by-

1. A prefix forming nouns, often denoting adjacency, position, or relation.; near, around

Derived terms

Middle English terms prefixed with by-

Descendants

• English: by-, be-
• Scots: by-, be-

References

• “bi-, pref.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007.

Etymology 2

Prefix

by-

1. Alternative form of bi-