by
/baɪ/preposition, adverb, adjective, noun, interjection
by is spelled B-Y: 2 letters and one syllable. It appears 4,571 times per million words in written English, the 25th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). People search “by vs bye” about 390 times a month (Google, United States). As a preposition, by means “Near or next to” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in by?
| Letters | 2: B-Y |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 4,571 times per million words; the 25th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search | |
| Sounds like |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How common is by?
By appears 4,571 times per million words in written English, the 25th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce by?
- /baɪ/
By has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Pvanp7-by.wav, En-us-by.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with by
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Sounds like: bi, buy, bye (Wiktionary's homophone list; some hold only in some accents).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of by
- bye
- bys plural
- bye-
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does by mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
preposition
- 1
Near or next to.
The mailbox is by the bus stop.
- 2
From one side of something to the other, passing close by; past.
The stream runs by our back door.
- 3
Not later than (the given time); not later than the end of (the given time interval); before.
Be back by ten o'clock!
- 4
After a given amount of time has elapsed or a given event has occurred.
By February, we were all sick of the cold.
- 5
Following a passive verb.
The matter was decided by the chairman.
- 6
Following a noun.
There was a call by the unions for a 30% pay rise.
- 7
Following an adjective.
I was aghast by what I saw.
- 8
Indicates the creator of a work: Existing through the authorship etc. of.
There are many well-known plays by William Shakespeare
adverb
- 1
Along a path which runs past someone or something.
I watched the parade as it passed by.
- 2
In the vicinity, near.
There was a shepherd close by.
- 3
To or at a place, as a residence or place of business.
I'll stop by on my way home from work.
- 4
Aside, away.
The women spent much time after harvest putting jams by for winter and spring.
- 5
Beyond or past a certain point.
I'll somehow manage to get by.
adjective
- 1
Out of the way, off to one side.
a by path; a by room
- 2
Subsidiary, incidental.
by catch; a by issue
noun
- 1
Abbreviation of attribution.
noun
- 1
Alternative form of bye.
interjection
- 1
datedDated form of bye (“goodbye”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
By in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | à côté de, au bord de, près de , avant , par , de |
| German | bei, neben, ba , bis , von, durch |
| Portuguese | perto, próximo , até , por , de , por mim |
| Spanish | por, cerca de , para , ante, frente a |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does by come from?
From Middle English by, bi, from Old English bī (“by; near; around”), from Proto-West Germanic *bī, from Proto-Germanic *bi (“near; by; around; about”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₁epi.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).