by
• preposition 1 through the agency or means of. 2 indicating a quantity or amount, or the size of a margin. 3 expressing multiplication, especially in dimensions. 4 indicating the end of a time period. 5 near to; beside. 6 past and beyond. 7 during. 8 according to. • adverb so as to go past. • noun (pl. byes) variant spelling of BYE1. — PHRASES by and by before long. by the by (or bye) incidentally. by and large on the whole. originally in nautical use, describing the handling of a ship both to the wind and off it. by oneself 1 alone. 2 unaided. — ORIGIN Old English.
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