Definitions

from The Century Dictionary.

  • By; past; near.
  • Beyond; besides; over and above.
  • By; past; near; hard by.
  • Beyond; besides; over and above.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • adverb obsolete Near; hard by; along; past.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Northern England, Scotland, archaic Uncommon; out of the ordinary; superior.
  • adverb Northern England, Scotland, archaic Past; by; beyond.
  • adverb Northern England, Scotland, archaic Uncommonly; exceptionally.
  • preposition Northern England, Scotland, archaic Beyond; past; more than; greater than; over and above; moreover.
  • preposition Northern England, Scotland, archaic (of time) Past; gone by; over.
  • preposition Northern England, Scotland, archaic Near; beside; by, close to.
  • preposition Northern England, Scotland, archaic On one side; out of the way.
  • preposition Northern England, Scotland, archaic Besides; in addition to; as well as; not to mention.
  • preposition Northern England, Scotland, archaic With the exception of; not taking into account.

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Middle English forby, forbi, of Middle Low German or North Germanic origin, equivalent to fore- +‎ by. Compare Dutch voorbij ("past"), Low German vorbi, vörbi, German vorbei ("gone, past"), Danish forbi, Swedish förbi. More at fore, by.

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Examples

  • • We will cut the main rate of corporation tax to 25p and the small companies 'rate to 20p, paid forby scrapping complex reliefs and allowances

    The New Class War 2009

  • • We will cut the main rate of corporation tax to 25p and the small companies 'rate to 20p, paid forby scrapping complex reliefs and allowances

    The New Class War 2009

  • • We will cut the main rate of corporation tax to 25p and the small companies 'rate to 20p, paid forby scrapping complex reliefs and allowances

    John Terry’s sacking as England captain tells us something interesting... 2009

  • • We will cut the main rate of corporation tax to 25p and the small companies 'rate to 20p, paid forby scrapping complex reliefs and allowances

    John Terry’s sacking as England captain tells us something interesting... 2009

  • “I wish there wasna sic a bird as a goose in the wide warld, forby the clecking that we hae at the burn-side.”

    The Monastery 2008

  • And then came that English knight, if it please you, and if he hasna killed my son outright, he has chased him aff the gate, and it may be lang eneugh ere I see him again — forby the damage done to outer door and inner door.

    The Monastery 2008

  • Scots, forby all they ate and drank — no, no, sir, I stand beyond challenge; but as for plaguing myself with county business, let them that aught the mare shoe the mare.

    Redgauntlet 2008

  • If you are going to teach MYCHILD in a public schoolwhere your salary ispaid forby mytax dollarsand who's doors open because of taxpayers who pay to keep the heat on and the electricity running .....

    Is Ron Paul Running For President? The Unreality of the "Reality" being Taught in Our American Schools 2008

  • So, wave the white flag, boys and girls; it's all over but theBenediction as four days fromnow the delegates shuffle from the Pepsi Center and Invesco Field and all the variousgatherings sponsored and paid forby those Blessed Corporate Souls such as AT&T, Comcast, General Motors, Microsoft, Motorola and on and on and on ...

    Lord of the Credit Cards 2008

  • “And natural it is,” said Tibb, “seeing that she is convent-bred, and can lay silk broidery, forby white-seam and shell-work.”

    The Monastery 2008

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