by
/baɪ/preposition
उच्चारण बाइ
द्वारा; के पास; तक; से
Basic word
- 1
near somebody or something; at the side of somebody or something; used, usually after a passive verb, to show who or what does or causes something; used for showing how or in what way something is done; not later than; past; according to
द्वारा; के पास; तक; से
- by the window
- written by Tagore
- travel by train
+ 6 more examples
- by Monday
- The novel was translated by a young teacher from Pune.
- She goes to college by metro every day.
- Please submit the form by Friday evening.
- We walked by the river after dinner.
- By my watch, the train is already ten minutes late.
§Structures (grammar patterns) 5
by + agent (passive)
Introduces the doer of the action in a passive sentence.
Passive वाक्य में काम करने वाले को बताने के लिए 'by' आता है।
- The poem was written by Tagore.
- The match was won by the home team.
by + means / method
Shows how something is done: by bus, by post, by hand, by email.
यह बताता है कि कोई काम कैसे किया गया: by bus, by post, by hand।
- We travelled to Jaipur by train.
- The invitation was sent by post.
by + time (deadline)
Means not later than that time. Compare with 'until', which means up to that time continuously.
इसका अर्थ है उस समय से पहले या ठीक तक। 'Until' का अर्थ उस समय तक लगातार है।
- Submit the form by Friday.
- I will be home by nine o'clock.
by + degree / measure
Shows the amount of a difference or measure: by two marks, by a few minutes, by the dozen.
अंतर या माप की मात्रा बताता है: by two marks, by a few minutes।
- Radhika missed the cut-off by two marks.
- Eggs are sold by the dozen.
by (near / past) and by oneself
'By' can mean beside or past. 'By oneself' means alone.
'By' का अर्थ पास या पास से गुज़रना भी है। 'By oneself' का अर्थ अकेले है।
- The bus drove by the school gate.
- She finished the project by herself.
+Collocations 4
by + transport
bustrainairroadmetrocycle
- We go to school by metro.
by + communication
postphoneemailhandcourier
- The form must be delivered by hand.
fixed phrases with by
by chanceby mistakeby heartby lawby farby turns
- The students learnt the poem by heart.
by and by
by and byby the wayby no meansby all meansby the time
- By the time we reached the station, the train had left.
“More examples 6
- The tickets must be booked by Monday.
टिकट सोमवार तक बुक कर लेने चाहिए।
- The painting was made by a village artist from Bihar.
यह चित्र बिहार के एक ग्रामीण कलाकार ने बनाया था।
- She is the best student in the class by far.
वह कक्षा की अब तक की सबसे अच्छी छात्रा है।
- I took your umbrella by mistake.
मैं गलती से आपकी छतरी ले गया।
- By the time the principal arrived, the assembly had ended.
जब तक प्रधानाचार्य पहुँचे, सभा समाप्त हो चुकी थी।
- By and by, the crowd grew quiet.
धीरे-धीरे भीड़ शांत हो गई।
!Common mistakes 3
✗ I will wait here by 5 p.m.
✓ I will wait here until 5 p.m.
For an action that continues up to a time, use 'until'; 'by' is for a deadline.
किसी समय तक चलने वाले काम के लिए 'until' आता है; 'by' समय-सीमा के लिए है।
✗ He came to school with bus.
✓ He came to school by bus.
Means of transport takes 'by', without an article.
यातायात के साधन के लिए बिना article के 'by' आता है।
✗ The book was written from Premchand.
✓ The book was written by Premchand.
The doer in a passive sentence is introduced by 'by'.
Passive वाक्य में कर्ता के लिए 'by' आता है।
≠Thesaurus: which synonym when
These prepositions all relate to time, but they differ in whether the action is a deadline or a continuing state.
ये सभी prepositions समय से जुड़े हैं, पर अंतर यह है कि काम समय-सीमा है या लगातार चलने वाली स्थिति।
Not later than a certain time; a deadline.
किसी निश्चित समय से पहले; समय-सीमा।
- Submit the form by Friday.
Earlier than a point in time, without stressing the limit.
किसी समय से पहले, सीमा पर बल दिए बिना।
- Reach before nine.
¶Idioms 1
by and by
before long; after a short time
कुछ समय बाद, जल्द ही, धीरे-धीरे समय के साथ
- By and by the rain stopped and the sun came out.
- You will understand all this by and by.
?Which word?
Homophones: by, buy and bye are all /baɪ/.
Homophones: by, buy और bye सब /baɪ/ हैं।
§Grammar and usage
By in the passive shows the doer ('The letter was written by Radhika'); by + means of transport without 'the' ('by bus', 'by train', 'by air'; but 'on foot'); by + time means not later than ('Submit it by Friday'), while until means up to ('Stay until Friday'); by + -ing shows method ('learn by practising').
यह बहुत पूछा जाता है: passive में by कर्ता दिखाता है ('The letter was written by Radhika'); परिवहन के साधन के साथ by, 'the' के बिना ('by bus', 'by train', 'by air'; पर 'on foot'); by + समय का अर्थ से देर नहीं है ('Submit it by Friday'), जबकि until का अर्थ तक ('Stay until Friday'); by + -ing तरीका दिखाता है ('learn by practising')।
“Collocations, idioms and sayings
By and large (generally), by heart (from memory), by the way (incidentally), by chance (accidentally), one by one, little by little, by far (by a great amount: 'by far the best').
Idioms: by and large (सामान्यतः), by heart (याद से, कंठस्थ), by the way (प्रसंगवश), by chance (संयोग से), one by one (एक-एक करके), little by little (धीरे-धीरे), by far (बहुत अधिक: 'by far the best')।