buy

[ bahy ]

verb (used with object)

, bought, buy·ing.

1. to acquire the possession of, or the right to, by paying or promising to pay an equivalent, especially in money; purchase.

   Antonyms: sell

2. to acquire by exchange or concession:

   to buy favor with flattery.

3. to hire or obtain the services of:

   The Yankees bought a new center fielder.

4. to bribe:

   Most public officials cannot be bought.

5. to be the monetary or purchasing equivalent of:

   Ten dollars buys less than it used to.

6. Chiefly Theology. to redeem; ransom.
7. Cards. to draw or be dealt (a card):

   He bought an ace.

8. Informal.
   1. to accept or believe:

      I don't buy that explanation.

   2. to be deceived by:

      He bought the whole story.

verb (used without object)

, bought, buy·ing.

1. to be or become a purchaser.

noun

1. an act or instance of buying.
2. something bought or to be bought; purchase:

   That coat was a sensible buy.

3. a bargain:

   The couch was a real buy.

verb phrase

1. to purchase a share, interest, or membership in:

   They tried to buy into the club but were not accepted.

2. to lower or reduce (the mortgage interest rate) by means of a buy-down.
3. to secure all of (an owner or partner's) share or interest in an enterprise:

   She bought out an established pharmacist and is doing very well.

4. Also buy into.
   1. to buy a supply of; accumulate a stock of.
   2. to buy back one's own possession at an auction.
   3. to undertake a buy-in.
5. to get rid of (a claim, opposition, etc.) by payment; purchase the noninterference of; bribe:

   The corrupt official bought off those who might expose him.

6. to buy as much as one can of something or as much as is offered for sale:

   He bought up the last of the strawberries at the fruit market.

buy

/ baɪ /

verb

1. 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. 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. intrfoll byinto to purchase shares of (a company)

   we bought into General Motors

8. 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

noun

1. a purchase (often in the phrases good or bad 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

Other Words From

• buya·ble adjective
• non·buying adjective noun
• pre·buy verb (used with object) prebought prebuying
• re·buy verb rebought rebuying
• un·buya·ble adjective
• un·buying adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of buy¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English byen, variant of byggen, buggen, Old English bycgan; cognate with Old Saxon buggjan, Gothic bugjan “to buy,” Old Norse byggja “to lend, rent”

Word History and Origins

Origin of buy¹

Old English bycgan ; related to Old Norse byggja to let out, lend, Gothic bugjan to buy

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. buy it, Slang. to get killed:

   He bought it at Dunkirk.

Synonym Study

Buy, purchase imply obtaining or acquiring property or goods for a price. Buy is the common and informal word, applying to any such transaction: to buy a house, vegetables at the market. Purchase is more formal and may connote buying on a larger scale, in a finer store, and the like: to purchase a year's supplies.

Example Sentences

The UK Foreign Office advises travellers: "Take care if offered, particularly for free, or when buying spirit-based drinks. If labels, smell or taste seem wrong then do not drink."

From BBC

Wish you could buy a ticket on the Europa Clipper spacecraft that’s on its way to check if there’s living slime on a Jupiterian moon?

From Salon

For anyone buying scratchers, he will happily wave his hand over the cards for good luck.

From Los Angeles Times

Sales at clothing stores were down 3.1% in October, with separate surveys having suggested that milder weather last month might have led shoppers to delay buying warmer clothing.

From BBC

The 74-year-old said she bought his autobiography, Tomorrow Will be a Good Day, as she thought the money would go to charity.

From BBC

Related Words

• acquisition
• bargain
• investment
• purchase