How to Use by in a Sentence

by

1 of 3 preposition
Definition of bynext
Synonyms for bynext
  • They have a house by the lake.
  • Some friends stopped by our house for a chat.
  • The bus went right by him without stopping.
  • His wife was sitting by him.
  • Why don't you come by my place later?
  • But the change has been backed in the past by Democrats.
    — Jackie Borchardt, The Enquirer, 21 Apr. 2021
  • The man grabbed the sister by the hair and pulled her to the ground.
    — Bob Sandrick, cleveland, 22 July 2023
  • These teams should be at the peak of their game by then.
    — Richard Obert, The Arizona Republic, 25 July 2021
  • The team was able to get water to them by the next day.
    — Shondiin Silversmith, The Arizona Republic, 12 Sep. 2020
  • The Heat controlled the game the rest of the way, pulling ahead by as many as 18 points in the second half.
    — Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 1 Apr. 2024
  • Blue was well aware of the large droplets produced by singing.
    — Calli McMurray, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Nov. 2022
  • The Suns would then have to win that by going 2-0 against the eighth-place team to land the eighth seed.
    — Duane Rankin, The Arizona Republic, 6 Aug. 2020
  • Times Square is one of many stores owned by Al Bartell.
    — Chanel Stitt, Detroit Free Press, 17 Oct. 2020
  • The only scoring in the first half was a trio of field goals by Lutz.
    — Fox News, 23 Oct. 2023
  • The stock also remains down by about 13% over the last month.
    — Trefis Team, Forbes, 26 May 2021
  • Tickets cost $2 and can be bought on the day of the drawing, but sales times vary by state.
    — Don Sweeney, Kansas City Star, 31 Mar. 2024
  • Mariemont still trailed by 10 points late in the third quarter and drove into the red zone.
    — Charlie Goldsmith, The Enquirer, 12 Sep. 2020
  • The series is named for the first book in a trio by author Jenny Han.
    — Alexandra Schonfeld, Peoplemag, 31 Aug. 2022
  • The show is produced by Boone Ashworth (@booneashworth).
    — Wired Staff, Wired, 28 Aug. 2020
  • People may stop by at any time to walk through the flags and pay tribute.
    — Teri Webster, Dallas News, 9 Nov. 2020
  • Which team can handle one loss, and which team might be done in by it?
    — Doug Lesmerises, oregonlive, 14 July 2021
  • Jim Nantz will have the play-by-play call of the game while Tony Romo will be the analyst.
    — Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 27 Jan. 2023
  • Catch the best deals on the best products, picked by our editors.
    — Gear Team, Wired, 26 Jan. 2022
  • Lovell’s was the third news conference held by police this week to plead their case to the city.
    — oregonlive, 10 July 2020
  • Turns out it was written by the Dahls' son 33 years ago.
    — Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 24 Sep. 2022
  • All rain will be off the Atlantic coast by 9 a.m. Friday.
    — NBC News, 18 Feb. 2022
  • The best way to do that is by taking fewer people afield at a time.
    — Joe Genzel, Outdoor Life, 12 Jan. 2021
  • The pool was built by then, and there's a vibe here that people really liked.
    — Maya Kachroo-Levine, Travel + Leisure, 26 July 2021
  • That law, of all laws, should not be diminished by this Court.
    — Joan Biskupic, CNN, 2 July 2021
  • The Bear offense had by far its best performance of the season.
    — Rex Nelson, Arkansas Online, 19 Oct. 2022
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by

2 of 3 adverb
  • The bus went right by without stopping.
  • Why don't you come by later?
  • We stood and applauded as the parade went by.
  • José leaned against a car and watched the crowds pass by.
    — Rekha Tenjarla, Washington Post, 14 Dec. 2022
  • The women stop by twice a day to feed and check on them.
    — Allison Klein, Washington Post, 2 Mar. 2018
  • But the months have flown by and the paper is piled high.
    — Bek Mitchell-Kidd, Charlotte Observer, 30 Jan. 2024
  • Goats and sheep look up from a munch to watch a car drive by.
    — Jill Barth, Forbes, 28 Sep. 2021
  • Feature a drive through the area to show what's close by.
    — Forbes Biz Council Expert Panel, Forbes, 13 Oct. 2021
  • Video of the ride showed the crack in the beam as cars packed with with riders whizzed by.
    — CBS News, 3 July 2023
  • Months went by, and there was no end to the travel ban in sight.
    — Ellen Carmichael, National Review, 15 July 2021
  • Loyola has the worst seed in the region but not by much.
    — Blair Kerkhoff, kansascity, 21 Mar. 2018
  • Sales of wine and beer rose as well, though not by quite as much.
    — Karen Kaplan Science and Medicine Editor, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2021
  • Kids and their parents join the group on their own bikes when the pack rolls by.
    — Adrienne So, WIRED, 27 Jan. 2023
  • But the weeks and months went by, and nothing happened.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 26 Mar. 2021
  • Close the drapes so the dog doesn’t see people walking by.
    — Karen Pearlman, sandiegouniontribune.com, 27 Oct. 2017
  • So Love could be ahead of that timeline, but not by much.
    — Joe Vardon, cleveland.com, 14 Nov. 2017
  • As time has gone by, my husband and I have grown apart.
    — Annie Lane, cleveland, 11 Jan. 2023
  • No one seemed to walk by without glancing at the steps.
    — The Courier-Journal, 23 Apr. 2023
  • There are nice, big windows all around to watch the scenery rise up, slip by, and fade away.
    — Don Sherman, Car and Driver, 22 Feb. 2023
  • Until then, at least the billboards are fun to drive by.
    — Maggie Gordon, Houston Chronicle, 27 June 2018
  • Even with all the time that's gone by since his death, there's still an air of mystery around him.
    — Meghan Overdeep, Southern Living, 9 Jan. 2024
  • Time has flown by and so much has changed and so much has happened.
    — Natalia Senanayake, Peoplemag, 23 Feb. 2024
  • But tell you what: Any time a poodle or small dog walks by?
    — Matt Donnelly, Variety, 9 May 2023
  • So, when a full-sized pineapple walked by, our heads were turned.
    — Mara Severin, Anchorage Daily News, 26 Aug. 2021
  • The six episodes fly by, and by the end I was fully invested in Kwabena and his path.
    — Matthew Gilbert, BostonGlobe.com, 7 Sep. 2023
  • Why not stop by, pick up a tag and shop for someone who needs help this year.
    — cleveland, 5 Dec. 2022
  • Sabit sat for the interview, but months went by with no news.
    — Raffi Khatchadourian, The New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2021
  • There are certain episodes where 10 months have gone by.
    — Jackie Strause, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 Nov. 2022
  • Some neighbors stop by for a cup of sugar or a spare egg.
    — Laura Regensdorf, Vogue, 3 Aug. 2018
  • Anything is quick to move by, and skies clear out tonight ahead of a warmer Friday.
    — Ian Livingston, Washington Post, 10 Aug. 2023
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by

3 of 3 noun
  • As the passer-by drove off, the man hit his car with the tool.
    — Bay City News, The Mercury News, 21 June 2019
  • The species made up nearly 15 percent of all the rays in the by-catch.
    — Priyanka Runwal, Smithsonian Magazine, 11 Nov. 2021
  • More than a decade ago, her son was shot in a drive-by.
    — Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2022
  • In 2111, the probe will have a fly-by near the planet that lasts about two minutes.
    — Steven Litt, cleveland, 6 Dec. 2020
  • But that's by the by for these rumour mongers, of course.
    — SI.com, 2 Oct. 2019
  • Bryan Shelton said the shooting could have been a drive-by.
    — Jonece Starr Dunigan, AL.com, 29 May 2017
  • The by-laws also set the date to hold the annual meeting.
    — Howard Dakoff, chicagotribune.com, 10 Apr. 2022
  • Police said dozens of shots rang out in a drive-by and many of them struck the hotel.
    — Carol Robinson, AL.com, 16 Jan. 2018
  • The shots were fired from outside the home in an apparent drive-by.
    — Carol Robinson | Crobinson@al.com, al, 16 Oct. 2021
  • On the side of the St. Clair bridge, passers-by can see the new aesthetic that the rest of the bridges' retaining walls will copy.
    — Kayla Dwyer, The Indianapolis Star, 13 Sep. 2021
  • Just beyond Toiny, as the coastal road starts to turn inland, park in a small lay-by.
    — David Jefferys, Condé Nast Traveler, 16 Apr. 2018
  • What about when the patient load at the hospital is on drive-by?
    — David Taylor, Houston Chronicle, 8 Aug. 2020
  • In the courtyard outside the studio his paintings stand in the sun, to be viewed by passers-by.
    — The Economist, 14 Sep. 2017
  • The report gives a minute-by-minute account of the struggle to save lives in the berthing where sailors were sleeping.
    — Gordon Lubold, WSJ, 18 Aug. 2017
  • The writers are on stand-by in case any last minute conflicts arise.
    — John Wenz, Popular Mechanics, 19 Mar. 2018
  • They were mobbed by passers-by and a group of around 25 journalists.
    — Washington Post, 8 June 2018
  • Her care for our son is way far greater than mine — on a minute-by-minute basis.
    — Kevin Acee, sandiegouniontribune.com, 13 May 2018
  • Police did say in a tweet late Sunday that the shooting was not a drive-by.
    — Charles P. Pierce, Esquire, 2 Oct. 2017
  • Eagen ran with Craig's ideas, hoping to give Blanc something that felt a bit more of a time gone-by.
    — Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 24 Nov. 2022
  • This health and safety measure within the by-laws will not be waived.
    — Cameron Knight, Cincinnati.com, 13 Mar. 2020
  • The by-far best player in this playoff series hasn’t been the best player.
    — Dave Hyde, sun-sentinel.com, 2 Sep. 2020
  • In the meantime, passers-by can at least enjoy the Calvo show outside the Alameda.
    — René A. Guzman, San Antonio Express-News, 6 Oct. 2021
  • The unique shape, Hung said, will hopefully intrigue passers-by to come and shop.
    — Phillip Molnar, sandiegouniontribune.com, 23 Mar. 2018
  • The resulting data can be crunched to create a minute-by-minute record of your life.
    — The Economist, 31 May 2018
  • Oh and, by the by, that lanky 14-year-old with the excellent dribble handle, court sense and hops?
    — Michael Powell, New York Times, 8 June 2019
  • Do a drive-by to check line length before parking and going in.
    — Naomi Thomas and Sandee Lamotte, CNN, 2 Nov. 2020
  • Some of the pass routes were quick moving, with Wilson’s getting the ball out of his hand faster as a by-product.
    — oregonlive, 9 Aug. 2021
  • The top 22 in the state is running this week as well as the by-conference Southwest Ohio story.
    — Wayne Baker, The Enquirer, 22 Nov. 2021
  • That’s, uh, a huge range—and this is where that minute-by-minute data would’ve really come in handy.
    — Lindsey Lanquist, SELF, 14 June 2018
  • If the weather is inclement, guests may drive-by to pick up a bag of goodies curbside.
    — courant.com, 15 Oct. 2020

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'by.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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