Meanings
present singular third person buys · participle present buying · past bought · participle past bought · archaic dialectal participle past rare boughten · first person past singular bought · archaic present second person singular buyest · past second person singular bought · archaic past second person singular boughtest · present singular third person buys · archaic present singular third person buyeth · past singular third person bought · past plural bought · past subjunctive bought · participle present buying · participle past bought
- ditransitivetransitiveTo obtain, especially by some sacrifice.
You just bought yourself an assault charge!
2 more examples
I've bought material comfort by foregoing my dreams.
Buy the truth and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding.
1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Proverbs 23:23 - archaictransitiveTo suffer consequences for (something) through being deprived of something; to pay for (something one has done).
VVhat villaine, doſt ſtrike me? I ſweare by the rood, As I am Iacke Strawe, thou ſhalt buy it with thy blood.
1593, anonymous author, The Life and Death of Iacke Straw […], →OCLC, Act I - transitiveTo bribe.
He tried to buy me with gifts, but I wouldn't give up my beliefs.
1 more example
After Bongino reiterated that Epstein killed himself, he was flooded with responses of disbelief. "WHO has bought the both of you?" one X user asked of Bongino and Patel, referencing the Fox News interview.
2025 May 20, Tal Axelrod, “MAGA faithful grow frustrated with Trump's Justice Department”, in Axios - transitiveTo be equivalent to in value.
The dollar doesn't buy as much as it used to.
- intransitiveTo make a purchase or purchases, to treat (for a drink, meal or gift)
She buys for Federated.
1 more example
Let's go out for dinner. I'm buying.
Synonyms: make a buy
- slangtransitivecard gamesTo make a bluff, usually a large one.
Smith tried to buy the pot on the river with a huge bluff.
Synonyms & antonyms
verbTo make a purchase or purchases, to treat (for a drink, meal or gift)
antonym(s) of “accept as true”
More synonyms by meaning
verbobtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction
verbmake illegal payments to in exchange for favors or influence
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Proto-Indo-European*bʰewgʰ-
- Proto-Germanic*bugjaną
- Proto-West Germanic*buggjan
- Old Englishbycġan
- Middle Englishbyen
- Englishbuy
From Middle English byen, from Old English bycġan (“to buy, pay for, acquire, redeem, ransom, procure, get done, sell”), from Proto-West Germanic *buggjan, from Proto-Germanic *bugjaną (“to buy”), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from Proto-Indo-European *bʰūgʰ- (“to bend”), or from Proto-Indo-European *bʰewgʰ- (“to take away, deliver”). Cognate with Scots buy (“to buy, purchase”), obsolete Dutch beugen (“to buy”), Old Saxon buggian, buggean (“to buy”), Old Norse byggja (“to build, settle”), Gothic 𐌱𐌿𐌲𐌾𐌰𐌽 (bugjan, “to buy”). The spelling with “u” is from the Southwest, while the pronunciation with /aɪ/ is from the East Midlands.
More words from Middle English, Old English, Proto-West Germanic
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Afrikaans koop
- koopto obtain something with money
Ancient Greek ἀγοράζω, ὠνέομαι
- ἀγοράζω (agorázō)to obtain something with money
- ὠνέομαι (ōnéomai)to obtain something with money
Arabic اِشْتَرَى
- اِشْتَرَى (ištarā)to obtain something with money
Basque erosi
- erosito obtain something with money
Bengali কেনা
- কেনা (kena)to obtain something with money
Bulgarian купу́вам, ку́пя
- купу́вам (kupúvam)to obtain something with money
- ку́пя (kúpja)to obtain something with money
Catalan comprar
- comprarto obtain something with money
Chinese Cantonese 買 /买
- 買 /买 (maai⁵)to obtain something with money
Chinese Mandarin 買賬 /买账, 買 /买
- 買賬 /买账 (mǎizhàng)to accept as true
- 買 /买 (mǎi)to obtain something with money
Czech baštit, žrát
- baštitto accept as true
- žrátto accept as true
- skočitto accept as true
- sbaštit i s navijákemto accept as true
- kupovatto obtain something with money
- koupitto obtain something with money
Danish købe
- købeto obtain something with money
Dutch slikken, kopen
- slikkento accept as true
- kopento obtain something with money
- aanschaffento obtain something with money
- aankopento obtain something with money
Esperanto aĉeti
- aĉetito obtain something with money
Estonian ostma
- ostmato obtain something with money
Finnish niellä, uskoa
- nielläto accept as true
- uskoato accept as true
- ostaato obtain something with money
French gober, acheter
- goberto accept as true
- acheterto obtain something with money
German abkaufen, abnehmen
- abkaufento accept as true
- abnehmento accept as true
- kaufento obtain something with money
Greek χάβω, χάφτω
- χάβω (chávo)to accept as true
- χάφτω (cháfto)to accept as true
- αγοράζω (agorázo)to obtain something with money
Hawaiian kūʻai
- kūʻaito obtain something with money
Hebrew קָנָה
- קָנָה (kaná)to obtain something with money
Hindi मानना, क्रय
- मानना (mānnā)to accept as true
- क्रय (kray)to obtain something with money
- ख़रीदना (xarīdnā)to obtain something with money
- कीनना (kīnnā)to obtain something with money
Hungarian bevesz, vásárol
- beveszto accept as true
- vásárolto obtain something with money
- veszto obtain something with money
Icelandic kaupa
- kaupato obtain something with money
Indonesian membeli
- membelito obtain something with money
Irish ceannaigh
- ceannaighto obtain something with money
Italian comprare, comperare (desueto)
- comprareto obtain something with money
- comperare (desueto)to obtain something with money
- acquistareto obtain something with money
Japanese 買う, 購入する
- 買う (kau)to obtain something with money
- 購入する (kōnyū suru)to obtain something with money
Korean 사다, 구입하다
- 사다 (sada)to obtain something with money
- 구입하다 (gu'iphada)to obtain something with money
Latin emō, sūmō
- emōto obtain something with money
- sūmōto obtain something with money
Latvian pirkt, nopirkt
- pirktto obtain something with money
- nopirktto obtain something with money
Lithuanian pirkti
- pirktito obtain something with money
Malay beli
- belito obtain something with money
Māori hoko
- hokoto obtain something with money
Norwegian Bokmål kjøpe, kjøpe
- kjøpeto accept as true
- kjøpeto obtain something with money
Polish kupować, kupić
- kupowaćto obtain something with money
- kupićto obtain something with money
- nabywaćto obtain something with money
- nabyćto obtain something with money
Portuguese engolir, comprar
- engolirto accept as true
- comprarto obtain something with money
- adquirirto obtain something with money
Punjabi ਖ਼ਰੀਦਣਾ
- ਖ਼ਰੀਦਣਾ (xarīdṇā)to obtain something with money
Romanian cumpăra
- cumpărato obtain something with money
Russian ве́рить, пове́рить
- ве́рить (véritʹ)to accept as true
- пове́рить (povéritʹ)to accept as true
- ха́вать (xávatʹ)to accept as true
- сха́вать (sxávatʹ)to accept as true
- покупа́ть (pokupátʹ)to obtain something with money
- купи́ть (kupítʹ)to obtain something with money
Scottish Gaelic ceannaich
- ceannaichto obtain something with money
Slovak naletieť, kupovať
- naletieťto accept as true
- kupovaťto obtain something with money
- kúpiťto obtain something with money
Spanish creer, comprar
- creerto accept as true
- comprarto accept as true
- convidarto treat
- comprarto obtain something with money
- mercarto obtain something with money
Swahili nunua, kununua
- nunuato accept as true
- kununuato obtain something with money
Swedish köpa, köpa
- köpato accept as true
- köpato obtain something with money
Tagalog bili, bilhin
- bilito obtain something with money
- bilhinto obtain something with money
- bumilito obtain something with money
Tamil வாங்கு
- வாங்கு (vāṅku)to obtain something with money
Thai ซื้อ
- ซื้อ (sʉ́ʉ)to obtain something with money
Turkish yemek, satın almak
- yemekto accept as true
- satın almakto obtain something with money
- sakmakto obtain something with money
- almakto obtain something with money
Ukrainian купува́ти, купи́ти
- купува́ти (kupuváty)to obtain something with money
- купи́ти (kupýty)to obtain something with money
Urdu مول لینا, خَرِیدْنا
- مول لینا (mol lenā)to obtain something with money
- خَرِیدْنا (xarīdnā)to obtain something with money
Vietnamese mua
- muato obtain something with money
Welsh prynu
- prynuto obtain something with money
Yiddish קויפֿן
- קויפֿן (koyfn)to obtain something with money
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with buy
All rhymes →Sounds the same
Cite this entry
buy. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/buy
“buy.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/buy. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “buy,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/buy.
Source: buy on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.