buy


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buy

purchase: buy a car; to acquire by exchange or concession; to bribe: to buy votes; to accept or believe: I don’t buy that story.
Not to be confused with:
by – next to; close to; a house by the sea; through the authority of: a study by the EPA; according to: a lousy movie by anyone’s standards; no later than: I’m usually home by late afternoon.
bye – secondary matter; side issue; short for good-bye; incidentally: By the bye, how was the dinner?
Abused, Confused, & Misused Words by Mary Embree Copyright © 2007, 2013 by Mary Embree

buy

 (bī)
v. bought (bôt), buy·ing, buys
v.tr.
1. To acquire in exchange for money or its equivalent; purchase. See Note at boughten.
2. To be capable of purchasing: "Certainly there are lots of things in life that money won't buy" (Ogden Nash).
3. To acquire by sacrifice, exchange, or trade: wanted to buy love with gifts.
4. To bribe: tried to buy a judge.
5. Informal To accept the truth or feasibility of: The officer didn't buy my lame excuse for speeding.
v.intr.
To purchase something; act as a purchaser.
n.
1. Something bought or for sale; a purchase.
2. An act of purchasing: a drug buy.
3. Something that is underpriced; a bargain.
Phrasal Verbs:
buy down
To pay an upfront fee to reduce (an interest rate) over part or all of the term of a loan.
buy into
1. To acquire a stake or interest in: bought into a risky real estate venture.
2. Informal To believe in, especially wholeheartedly or uncritically: couldn't buy into that brand of conservatism.
buy off
To bribe (an official, for example) in order to secure improper cooperation or gain exemption from a regulation or legal consequence.
buy out
To purchase the entire stock, business rights, or interests of.
buy up
To purchase all that is available of.
Idioms:
buy it Slang
To be killed.
buy the farm Slang
To die, especially suddenly or violently.
buy time
To increase the time available for a specific purpose: "A moderate recovery thus buys time for Congress and the Administration to whittle the deficit" (G. David Wallace).

[Middle English bien, beyen, from Old English bycgan, byg-; akin to Gothic bugjan, from Germanic *bugjanan, of unknown origin.]

buy′a·ble adj.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

buy

(baɪ)
vb (mainly tr) , buys, buying or bought
1. (Commerce) to acquire by paying or promising to pay a sum of money or the equivalent; purchase
2. to be capable of purchasing: money can't buy love.
3. to acquire by any exchange or sacrifice: to buy time by equivocation.
4. (Commerce) (intr) to act as a buyer
5. to bribe or corrupt; hire by or as by bribery
6. slang to accept as true, practical, etc
7. (Stock Exchange) (foll by: into) to purchase shares of (a company): we bought into General Motors.
8. (Theology) (tr) theol (esp of Christ) to ransom or redeem (a Christian or the soul of a Christian)
9. have bought it slang to be killed
n
a purchase (often in the phrases good or bad buy)
[Old English bycgan; related to Old Norse byggja to let out, lend, Gothic bugjan to buy]
Usage: The use of off after buy as in I bought this off my neighbour was formerly considered incorrect, but is now acceptable in informal contexts
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

buy

(baɪ)

v. bought, buy•ing,
n. v.t.
1. to acquire the possession of, esp. by paying an equivalent in money; purchase.
2. to acquire by exchange or concession: to buy favor with flattery.
3. to hire or obtain the services of.
4. to bribe.
5. to be the purchasing equivalent of: A dollar doesn't buy much these days.
6. Theol. to redeem; ransom.
7. Informal. to accept or believe: I don't buy that explanation.
v.i.
8. to be or become a purchaser.
9. buy into, to purchase a share, interest, or membership in.
10. buy off, to get rid of (a claim, opposition, etc.) by payment; bribe.
11. buy out, to purchase all the business shares belonging to (another).
12. buy up, to buy as much of (something) as is available.
n.
13. an act or instance of buying.
14. something bought; a purchase.
15. a bargain: The couch was a real buy.
Idioms:
buy it, Slang. to get killed.
[before 1000; Middle English byen, variant of byggen, buggen, Old English bycgan]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

buy

When you buy something, you get it by paying money for it. The past tense and -ed participle of buy is bought.

I'm going to buy everything that I need today.
He bought a first-class ticket.

If you pay for a drink for someone else, you say that you buy them a drink.

Let me buy you a drink.

Be Careful!
Don't say 'Let me pay you a drink'.

Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

buy


Past participle: bought
Gerund: buying

Imperative
buy
buy
Present
I buy
you buy
he/she/it buys
we buy
you buy
they buy
Preterite
I bought
you bought
he/she/it bought
we bought
you bought
they bought
Present Continuous
I am buying
you are buying
he/she/it is buying
we are buying
you are buying
they are buying
Present Perfect
I have bought
you have bought
he/she/it has bought
we have bought
you have bought
they have bought
Past Continuous
I was buying
you were buying
he/she/it was buying
we were buying
you were buying
they were buying
Past Perfect
I had bought
you had bought
he/she/it had bought
we had bought
you had bought
they had bought
Future
I will buy
you will buy
he/she/it will buy
we will buy
you will buy
they will buy
Future Perfect
I will have bought
you will have bought
he/she/it will have bought
we will have bought
you will have bought
they will have bought
Future Continuous
I will be buying
you will be buying
he/she/it will be buying
we will be buying
you will be buying
they will be buying
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been buying
you have been buying
he/she/it has been buying
we have been buying
you have been buying
they have been buying
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been buying
you will have been buying
he/she/it will have been buying
we will have been buying
you will have been buying
they will have been buying
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been buying
you had been buying
he/she/it had been buying
we had been buying
you had been buying
they had been buying
Conditional
I would buy
you would buy
he/she/it would buy
we would buy
you would buy
they would buy
Past Conditional
I would have bought
you would have bought
he/she/it would have bought
we would have bought
you would have bought
they would have bought
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.buy - an advantageous purchasebuy - an advantageous purchase; "she got a bargain at the auction"; "the stock was a real buy at that price"
purchase - something acquired by purchase
song - a very small sum; "he bought it for a song"
travel bargain - a bargain rate for travellers on commercial routes (usually air routes)
Verb1.buy - obtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction; "The family purchased a new car"; "The conglomerate acquired a new company"; "She buys for the big department store"
commerce, commercialism, mercantilism - transactions (sales and purchases) having the objective of supplying commodities (goods and services)
buy back, repurchase - buy what had previously been sold, lost, or given away; "He bought back the house that his father sold years ago"
take - buy, select; "I'll take a pound of that sausage"
get - purchase; "What did you get at the toy store?"
subscribe to, subscribe, take - receive or obtain regularly; "We take the Times every day"
acquire, get - come into the possession of something concrete or abstract; "She got a lot of paintings from her uncle"; "They acquired a new pet"; "Get your results the next day"; "Get permission to take a few days off from work"
buy out, buy up, take over - take over ownership of; of corporations and companies
pick up - buy casually or spontaneously; "I picked up some food for a snack"
buy food, take out - purchase prepared food to be eaten at home
impulse-buy - buy on impulse without proper reflection
buy - be worth or be capable of buying; "This sum will buy you a ride on the train"
buy out, buy up, take over - take over ownership of; of corporations and companies
buy in, stock up, stock - amass so as to keep for future use or sale or for a particular occasion or use; "let's stock coffee as long as prices are low"
sell - exchange or deliver for money or its equivalent; "He sold his house in January"; "She sells her body to survive and support her drug habit"
2.buy - make illegal payments to in exchange for favors or influence; "This judge can be bought"
crime, criminal offence, criminal offense, law-breaking, offense, offence - (criminal law) an act punishable by law; usually considered an evil act; "a long record of crimes"
pay - give money, usually in exchange for goods or services; "I paid four dollars for this sandwich"; "Pay the waitress, please"
sop - give a conciliatory gift or bribe to
buy off, pay off - pay someone with influence in order to receive a favor
3.buy - be worth or be capable of buying; "This sum will buy you a ride on the train"
buy, purchase - obtain by purchase; acquire by means of a financial transaction; "The family purchased a new car"; "The conglomerate acquired a new company"; "She buys for the big department store"
be - have the quality of being; (copula, used with an adjective or a predicate noun); "John is rich"; "This is not a good answer"
4.buy - acquire by trade or sacrifice or exchange; "She wanted to buy his love with her dedication to him and his work"
acquire, get - come into the possession of something concrete or abstract; "She got a lot of paintings from her uncle"; "They acquired a new pet"; "Get your results the next day"; "Get permission to take a few days off from work"
5.buy - accept as true; "I can't buy this story"
believe - accept as true; take to be true; "I believed his report"; "We didn't believe his stories from the War"; "She believes in spirits"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

buy

verb
1. purchase, get, score (slang), secure, pay for, obtain, acquire, invest in, shop for, procure He could not afford to buy a house.
purchase sell, retail, auction, barter, vend
2. accept, believe, trust, credit, rely on, swallow (informal), have faith in, be persuaded of, place confidence in, presume true, take as gospel, take on I'm not buying any of that nonsense.
noun
1. purchase, deal, bargain, acquisition, steal (informal), snip (informal), giveaway a good buy
buy someone off bribe, square, fix (informal), pay off (informal), lure, corrupt, get at, suborn, grease someone's palm (slang), influence by gifts, oil the palm of (informal) policies designed to buy off the working-class
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

buy

verb
1. To acquire in exchange for money or something of equal value:
2. To give, offer, or promise a bribe to.Also used with off:
Informal: pay off.
3. Slang. To regard (something) as true or real:
Slang: swallow.
noun
1. Something bought or capable of being bought:
2. Informal. Something offered or bought at a low price:
Informal: deal.
Slang: steal.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
اشترىيَشْتَرييَشتَري
koupitkupovat
købe
aĉeti
ostaauskoa
kupiti
vásárolvesz
beli
kaupa
買う
사다
emere
pirkti
pirkt
kupiti
köpa
ซื้อ
mua

buy

[baɪ] (bought (vb: pt, pp))
A. Ncompra f
a bad buyuna mala compra
a good buyuna buena compra
this month's best buyla mejor oferta del mes
B. VT
1. (= purchase) → comprar
to buy sth for sb; buy sb sthcomprar algo a algn
he bought me a braceletme compró una pulsera
let me buy it for youdeja que te lo compre
to buy sth from sbcomprar algo a algn
I bought it from my brother/the shop on the cornerse lo compré a mi hermano/lo compré en la tienda de la esquina
I can't get anyone to buy it off me >no consigo que me lo compre nadie
you can buy them cheaper in the supermarketen el supermercado los venden más baratos
money couldn't buy itno se puede comprar con dinero
their victory was dearly boughtla victoria les costó cara
2. (= bribe) → sobornar, comprar
3. (= believe) → creer, tragar
he won't buy that explanationno se va a tragar esa explicación
all right, I'll buy itbueno, te creo
4. he bought it (= died) → estiró la pata, la palmó (Sp)
buy back VT + ADVvolver a comprar
buy in VT + ADV (Brit) [+ food] → proveerse or abastecerse de (St Ex) → comprar (Fin) → comprar (por cuenta del dueño)
buy into VI + PREP
1. [+ company] → comprar acciones de
2. (fig) [+ idea] → apoyar
buy off VT + ADV (= bribe) → sobornar, comprar
buy out VT + ADV (Comm) [+ business, partner] → comprar su parte de
to buy o.s. out of the army pagar una suma de dinero para dejar el ejército antes del periodo acordado
buy up VT + ADV [+ property] → acaparar; [+ stock] → comprar todas las existencias de
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

buy

[ˈbaɪ]
vb [bought] [ˈbɔːt] (pt, pp)
vtacheter
to buy sb sth → acheter qch à qn
He bought me an ice cream → Il m'a acheté une glace.
I bought him an ice cream → Je lui ai acheté une glace.
to buy sb a drink → offrir un verre or à boire à qn
to buy sb lunch → inviter qn à déjeuner
to buy sth from sb → acheter qch à qn
I bought a watch from him → Je lui ai acheté une montre.
to buy sth off sb → racheter qch à qn
to buy sth from a shop → acheter qch dans un magasin
[+ company] → acheter
[+ time] → gagner
nachat m
That was a bad buy → C'était un mauvais achat.
a good buy (= good value) → une bonne affaire (= useful) → un bon achat
buy back
vtracheter
buy in
vt (British) [+ goods] → s'approvisionner en
buy into
vt (British) [+ company] → acheter des actions de; [+ industry] → investir dans
buy off
vt (= bribe) [+ voters, union, child] → amadouer; [+ witness] → acheter
buy out
vt
[+ partner] → désintéresser
[+ business] → racheter
buy up
vt [+ land, property, commodity] → acheter en bloc, raflerbuy-back [ˈbaɪbæk] n [shares] → rachat m
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

buy

vb: pret, ptp <bought>
vt
(= purchase)kaufen; (Rail) ticket alsolösen; there are some things that money can’t buyes gibt Dinge, die man nicht kaufen kann; all that money can buyalles, was man mit Geld kaufen kann; to buy and sell goodsWaren an- und verkaufen
(fig) victory, famesich (dat)erkaufen; timegewinnen; (= bribe)bestechen, kaufen; the victory was dearly boughtder Sieg war teuer erkauft
to buy something (inf: = accept) → etw akzeptieren; I’ll buy thatdas ist o.k. (inf); (= believe)ja, das glaube ich
(inf, = be killed) he bought itden hats erwischt (inf)
vikaufen
n (inf)Kauf m; to be a good buyein guter Kauf sein; (clothes also, food)preiswert sein
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

buy

[baɪ] (bought (vb: pt, pp))
1. n a good/bad buyun buon/cattivo acquisto or affare m
2. vtcomprare, acquistare; (tickets, petrol) → fare, prendere (Comm) (company) → acquistare (fig) (time) → guadagnare
to buy sb sth/sth from sb → comprare qc per qn/qc da qn
the victory was dearly bought → la vittoria è stata pagata a caro prezzo
to buy sb a drink → offrire da bere a qn
he won't buy that explanation (fam) → quella scusa non se la beve
buy back vt + advriprendersi, prendersi indietro
buy in vt + adv (Brit) (goods) → far provvista di
buy into vi + prep (Brit) (Comm) → acquistare delle azioni di
buy off vt + adv (fam) (bribe) → comprare
buy out vt + adv (business) → rilevare
buy up vt + adv (property) → accaparrarsi
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

buy

(bai) present participle ˈbuying: past tense, past participle bought (boːt) verb
to get (something) by exchanging it for money. He has bought a car.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

buy

يَشتَري koupit købe kaufen αγοράζω comprar ostaa acheter kupiti acquistare 買う 사다 kopen kjøpe kupić comprar покупать köpa ซื้อ satın almak mua
Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009

buy

vt. comprar, obtener, hacer una compra.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012
Collins Multilingual Translator © HarperCollins Publishers 2009
References in classic literature ?
The customers come again and again, and buy quantities, in spite of being afraid of Ginger and Pickles.
He meant to have the company go into liquidation, and then buy it for a very small amount.
With the very first pennies I make, I'll buy Father a new cloth coat.
For one nobleman who was ready to buy one genuine modern picture at a small price, there were twenty noblemen ready to buy twenty more than doubtful old pictures at great prices.
"But," I interrupted, "if Larsan had no intention of using the cane as evidence against Darzac, why had he made himself up to look like the man when he went in to buy it?"
First, I'll buy the island; next, get forty or fifty recruits and start clearing and planting; and at the same time I'll run up a bungalow; and then you'll be relieved of my embarrassing presence--now don't say that it isn't."
He wouldn't look at a bargain that gave him ten, fifteen per cent profit, but holds back to buy a rouble's worth for twenty kopecks."
We did not buy any wooden images of the Lion, nor any ivory or ebony or marble or chalk or sugar or chocolate ones, or even any photographic slanders of him.
Saxon showed her around, and she was delighted with everything, including the terms of the lease and its option to buy.
So far as I know, this is the first time as here you've been, since it's been known as the bailiff's in the house; and I was here yesterday, and looked at all Bessy's linen and things, and I told her I'd buy in the spotted tablecloths.
This remains to be seen, and so, after waiting several months, I decided to buy David a rocking-horse.
Well, that much he would be frank about; he would let them know exactly how many stacks of chips he could buy.