Phrase guide
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
No pronunciation record was provided for this word.
adj
Incidental; unplanned.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: accidental, causeless, random, accidentary, adventitious, by accident, by the by, casual, chanceable, fortuitous, incidental, lippening, occasional, serendipitous, unforeseen, unintended, unintentional, unplanned
Antonyms: none provided
prep_phrase
Used to introduce a new topic; incidentally, by the way.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
History
The second "by" is a noun meaning "a secondary issue". Phrase used since the 17th century.
