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by(
bay
)
A preposition is a word that indicates the relationship between a noun and another word (e.g. He ran through the door.).
preposition
1. (indicating agent or cause)
a. por
The bridge was destroyed by the flood waters.El puente quedó destruido por las inundaciones.
The house was built by an architect.La casa fue construida por un arquitecto.
2. (indicating author or creator)
a. de
We're reading a book by Octavio Paz in Spanish class.Estamos leyendo un libro de Octavio Paz en la clase de español.
3. (indicating location)
a. junto a
The mayor built his house by the park.El alcalde construyó su casa junto al parque.
b. al lado de
I waited by the door until my name was called.Esperé al lado de la puerta hasta que me llamaron.
4. (indicating way or path)
a. por
The cowboy came by the old buffalo trail.El vaquero llegó por la vieja senda de los bisontes.
5. (indicating movement near)
a. por delante de
We drove by your house yesterday.Ayer pasamos por delante de tu casa.
6. (indicating short visit)
a. por
I’ll stop by the store and get some eggs.Pasaré por la tienda a comprar huevos.
7. (indicating final destination)
a. a
We’re going to go by my mom’s house for lunch on Saturday.Vamos a ir a la casa de mi mamá a comer el sábado.
8. (indicating time limit)
a. antes de
Since I wasn't home by 10, my dad will ground me.Como no llegué a casa antes de las 10, mi papá me va a castigar.
b. para
If the package hasn't arrived by Tuesday, we should contact the sender.Si no ha llegado el paquete para el martes, deberíamos contactar al remitente.
9. (indicating time span)
a. de
By day he's a tailor and by night he's a dancer.De día es sastre y de noche es bailarín.
10. (indicating means)
a. mediante
The energy produced by fusion is emitted as light.La energía producida mediante fusión se emite como luz.
b. por
The books are classified by subject.Los libros están clasificados por tema.
c. en (of transportation)
Would you rather go by car or by train?¿Preferirías ir en coche o en tren?
11. (according to)
a. según
It's noon by my watch.Es mediodía según mi reloj.
b. conforme a
By the new rules, there is no parking allowed near the fire station.Conforme a las nuevas normas, está prohibido estacionarse cerca de la estación de bomberos.
c. por
It's all right by me.Por mí no hay problema.
12. (mathematics)
a. por (multiplication)
Multiply three by twelve.Multiplica tres por doce.
b. entre (division)
Ten divided by five is two.Diez dividido entre cinco son dos.
13. (in compass directions)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
The wind is blowing east by southeast.El viento sopla estesudeste.
We were sailing north by northwest.Navegábamos en dirección nornoroeste.
14. (in measurements)
a. por
The new deck will measure ten feet by eight feet.Le nueva plataforma tendrá una medida de diez pies por ocho.
15. (indicating rate or amount)
a. por
Are you paid by the hour or by the job?¿Te pagan por hora o por trabajo?
She broke the record by two seconds.Batió el récord por dos segundos.
b. en (with percentages)
The price has gone up by 50%.El precio ha subido en un 50%.
16. (with gerund)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
She ended by thanking everyone who had helped.Terminó dando las gracias a todos los que habían ayudado.
They lowered their prices a lot, and by doing so they expected to fill the store with customers.Bajaron muchísimo los precios, y con esto pretendían llenar la tienda de clientes.
An adverb is a word that describes a verb, an adjective, or other adverbs (e.g. to run quickly, very tired).
adverb
17. (nearby)
a. cerca
Is the police station close by?¿Está cerca la comisaría?
18. (past)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
Our neighbor passed by without saying hello.Nuestro vecino pasó sin saludarnos.
You don’t own the street. Let me by!No eres dueño de la calle. ¡Déjame pasar!
19. (on a short visit)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
I'll stop by later.Me paso más tarde por ahí.
Your dad came by today.Tu papá pasó por aquí hoy.
20. (on one side)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
Can you keep the dress by for me? I’ll come back and pay for it later.¿Me puede apartar el vestido? Volveré luego a pagarlo.
I have a little money put by for emergencies.Tengo ahorrado un poco de dinero para emergencias.
Copyright © Curiosity Media Inc.
by
A preposition is a word that indicates the relationship between a noun and another word (e.g. He ran through the door.).
preposition
1. (expressing agent)
a. por
he was arrested by the policefue detenido por la policía
made by handhecho(a) a mano
a play by Shakespeareuna obra de Shakespeare
2. (close to)
a. junto a
by the firejunto al fuego
by the side of the roadal borde de la carretera
3. (via)
a. por
to go by the same routeir por la misma ruta
by land/seapor tierra/mar
4. (with manner, means)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
by railen tren
by car/planeen coche/avión
to pay by credit cardpagar con tarjeta de crédito
he had two children by his first wifetuvo dos hijos de su primera esposa
to take somebody by the hand/armtomar or
to know somebody by sightconocer a alguien de vista
to earn one's living by teachingganarse la vida enseñando
to go by appearancesfiarse de las apariencias
to call somebody by their first namellamar a alguien por su nombre (de pila)
what do you mean by that?¿qué quieres decir con eso?
5. (past)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
he walked right by me without stoppingpasó por mi lado sin detenerse
we drove by the school on the way herepasamos delante del colegio camino de aquí
6. (at or before)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
he should be here by nowdebería estar ya aquí
by then it was too latepara entonces ya era demasiado tarde
by tomorrowpara mañana
by 1980 they were all deaden 1980 ya estaban todos muertos
7. (during)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
by dayde día
by nightde noche, por la noche
8. (with measurements, quantities, numbers)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
to divide by threedividir entre tres
to multiply by threemultiplicar por tres
to sell something by weightvender algo al peso
three meters by twotres por dos metros, tres metros por dos
one by oneuno(a) a uno(a)
to increase by 50 percentaumentar en un 50 por ciento
9. (as a result of)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
by chance/mistakepor casualidad/error
An adverb is a word that describes a verb, an adjective, or other adverbs (e.g. to run quickly, very tired).
adverb
10. (general)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
by and bypoco a poco
by and largeen general, por lo general
by the way,…a propósito,…
11. (past)
a.
This refers to an idiomatic word or phrase for which there is no word-for-word translation.
no direct translation
to pass bypasar
to drive bypasar sin detenerse
Copyright © 2006 Harrap Publishers Limited
by [baɪ]
When by is the second element in a phrasal verb, eg go by, stand by, look up the verb. When it is part of a set combination, eg by chance, by degrees, by half, look up the other word.
preposition
1 (close to) al lado de; junto a
the house by the church la casa que está al lado de or junto a la iglesia; come and sit by me ven y siéntate a mi lado or junto a mí; I've got it by me lo tengo a mi lado; "where's the bank?" — "it's by the post office" —¿dónde está el banco? —está al lado de or junto a la oficina de correos
sitting by the fire
the house by the river la casa que hay junto al río; a holiday by the sea unas vacaciones en la costa
2 (via) por
he came in by the back door/by the window entró por la puerta de atrás/por la ventana; which route did you come by? ¿por dónde or por qué camino or por qué ruta viniste?; I went by Dover fui por Dover
3 (past) por delante de
she walked by me pasó por delante de mí; he rushed by me without seeing me pasó deprisa por delante de mí sin verme; we drove by the cathedral pasamos con el coche por delante de la catedral
4 (during)
by day de día; by night de noche; by day he's a bank clerk and by night he's a security guard de día es un empleado de banco y de noche es guarda de seguridad; a postcard of London by night una postal nocturna de Londres
5 (in expressions of time) (not later than) para
we must be there by four o'clock tenemos que estar allí para las cuatro; can you finish it by tomorrow? ¿puedes terminarlo para mañana?; I'll be back by midnight estaré de vuelta antes de or para la medianoche; applications must be submitted by 21 April las solicitudes deben presentarse antes del 21 de abril
by the time I got there it was too late cuando llegué ya era demasiado tarde
it'll be ready by the time you get back estará listo para cuando regreses
by that time or by then I knew para entonces ya lo sabía
 (in year, on date, on day)
by tomorrow/Tuesday, I'll be in France mañana/el martes ya estaré en Francia; by yesterday it was clear that ... ayer ya se veía claro que ...; by 30 September we had spent £500 a 30 de septiembre habíamos gastado 500 libras; by 1998 the figure had reached ... en 1998 la cifra había llegado a ...; by 2010 the figure will have reached ... hacia el año 2010 la cifra habrá llegado a ...
6 (indicating amount or rate)
to reduce sth by a third reducir algo en una tercera parte; to rent a house by the month alquilar una casa por meses; letters were arriving by the sackload las cartas llegaban a montones; it seems to be getting bigger by the minute/day parece que va creciendo minuto a minuto/día a día
to sell sth by the dozen vender algo por docenas
we get paid by the hour nos pagan por horas
we sell by the kilo vendemos por kilos
we charge by the kilometre cobramos por kilómetro
little by little poco a poco
one by one uno tras otro; uno a uno
two by two de dos en dos
7 (indicating agent, cause) por
the thieves were caught by the police los ladrones fueron capturados por la policía; la policía capturó a los ladrones; surrounded by enemies rodeado de enemigos; a painting by Picasso un cuadro de Picasso; who's that song by? ¿de quién es esa canción?; he had a daughter by his first wife tuvo una hija con su primera mujer
8 (indicating transport, method etc)
by air [+travel] en avión; [+send] por avión; por vía aérea
by bus/car en autobús/coche
to pay by cheque pagar con cheque
made by hand hecho a mano
by land por tierra
by the light of the moon/a candle a la luz de la luna/de una vela
by rail or train en tren
by sea por mar
9 (with gerund)
by working hard a fuerza de mucho trabajar; trabajando mucho; he ended by saying that ... terminó diciendo que ...
/by leaving early/ he missed the rush /by saving hard/ he managed to buy a small flat
10 (according to) según
by my watch it's five o'clock según mi reloj son las cinco; by my calculations según mis cálculos
by what you say
to call sth by its proper name llamar algo por su nombre; it's all right by me por mí no hay problema or está bien; if that's okay by you si no tienes inconveniente
that's fine by me
11 (measuring difference)
she missed the plane by a few minutes perdió el avión por unos minutos; we beat them to Joe's house by five minutes llegamos a casa de Joe cinco minutos antes que ellos; broader by a metre un metro más ancho
he's taller than me by an inch
she's lighter than her brother by only a couple of pounds pesa solo un par de libras menos que su hermano; it's too short by a metre es un metro más corto de lo que tendría que ser; it missed me by inches no me dio por un pelo; me pasó rozando
12 (in measurements, sums)
a room 3 metres by 4 una habitación de 3 metros por 4
to divide by dividir por or entre
to multiply by multiplicar por
13
by oneself solo
he was all by himself estaba solo; I did it all by myself lo hice yo solo; don't leave the two of them alone by themselves no los dejes solos
14 (with compass point)
north by northeast nornordeste; south by southwest sudsudoeste; sursuroeste
15 (in oaths) por
I swear by Almighty God juro por Dios Todopoderoso; by heaven por Dios
in set expressions by the [by]([e]) by the by(e), I forgot to tell you that ... he told me by the by(e)
adverb
1 (past)
a train hurtled by pasó un tren a toda velocidad
they wouldn't let me by no me dejaban pasar
she rushed by without stopping pasó a toda prisa, sin pararse
to [rush] by
2 (in set expressions)
by and by
I'll be with you by and by enseguida estoy contigo; you'll be sorry by and by no tardarás en arrepentirte; by and by we heard voices al poco rato oímos unas voces
close or hard by muy cerca
by and large en general; por lo general
to put sth by poner algo a un lado
Collins Complete Spanish Electronic Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
Examples
'by' in our machine translators
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