by-

by- · prefix¹

1. Proto-Germanic · derived from*būwiz“dwelling”
2. Old Norse · derived frombýr“dwelling, town”
3. North Germanic · derived from
4. Middle English · inherited fromby“town”
5. English todayby-

From Middle English by (“town”), of North Germanic origin, from Old Norse býr (“dwelling, town”), from Proto-Germanic *būwiz (“dwelling”). Cognate with Danish by (“town”). More at bower.

by- · prefix²

1. Proto-Germanic · derived from*bi-
2. Old English · derived frombī-“by, near, around”
3. Middle English · derived frombi-
4. English todayby-

Partly from a combining form of by (“by, near, around”), and partly continuing Middle English bi-, by-, from Old English bī- (“by, near, around”), from Proto-Germanic *bi-, whence also be-. Cognate with Dutch bij-, German bei-.

Words from the same roots