Etymology

forby

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Today it means: Uncommon; out of the ordinary; extraordinary; superior. Full definition →

Middle English forby
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The story

  1. Middle English · inherited fromforby
  2. English todayforby

From Middle English forby, forbi, of Middle Low German or North Germanic origin, equivalent to fore- + by. Compare Saterland Frisian foarbie (“beyond, past”), West Frisian foarby (“over, beyond, past”), Dutch voorbij (“beyond, past”), Low German vörbi, vörbie (“over, up, gone, finished, past”), German vorbei (“over, gone, past”), Danish forbi, Swedish förbi. More at fore, by.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.