go by
"go-by" is a 4-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“go by” is outside the top-ranked English vocabulary, used as a verb - the kind of word writers most often double-check.
- Unranked
- below top-frequency English
- 5
- letters
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - To pass or go past without much interaction.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | go by |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| Letters | 5 |
| Misspellings tracked | 0 |
| Confusable pairs | 0 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “go by” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for go by is 5 letters long, classified as a verb. It sits outside the most-frequent rank tiers, which is often why uncommon words generate more spelling variants per reader. Wiktionary records 4 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for go by, and the word's spelling is regular enough that our generator found nothing worth flagging. Our confusable-pair dataset has no match for it, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.
No borrowing history is documented for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct English form is go by, spelled G-O- -B-Y.
Definition
- 1To pass or go past without much interaction.
- 2To be called, to use as a name.
- 3To suggest or request that other people use a specific set of gender pronouns when referring to the subject.
- 4To follow; to assume as true for the purposes of making a decision, taking an action, etc.
This word in other languages
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Using “go by”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is G-O- -B-Y - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.