lobby

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition

1. n. A hall, foyer, or waiting room at or near the entrance to a building, such as a hotel or theater.
2. n. A public room next to the assembly chamber of a legislative body.
3. n. A group of persons engaged in trying to influence legislators or other public officials in favor of a specific cause: the banking lobby; the labor lobby.
4. v. To try to influence the thinking of legislators or other public officials for or against a specific cause: lobbying for stronger environmental safeguards; lobbied against the proliferation of nuclear arms.
5. v. To try to influence public officials on behalf of or against (proposed legislation, for example): lobbied the bill through Congress; lobbied the bill to a negative vote.
6. v. To try to influence (an official) to take a desired action.

Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia

1. n. An inclosed space surrounding or communicating with one or more apartments. A small hall or waiting-room serving as the entrance into a principal apartment, where there is a considerable space between such apartment and a portico or vestibule; especially, such a hall or anteroom in a theater or adjacent to a legislative or audience chamber.
2. n. Nautical, an apartment immediately before the captain's cabin.
3. n. Persons who occupy or resort to the lobby or the approaches to a legislative chamber for the purpose of transacting business with the members, and especially of influencing their official action or votes.
4. To frequent the lobby of a legislature or other deliberative body for the purpose of influencing the official action of members; solicit votes from members, whether in the lobby or elsewhere.
5. To promote or carry by solicitation of legislative favor or votes: as, to lobby a measure through Congress.

Wiktionary

1. n. informal scouse (from lobscouse)
2. n. An entryway or reception area; vestibule; passageway; corridor.
3. n. A class or group of people who try to lobby or influence public officials; collectively, lobbyists.
4. n. video games A virtual area where players can chat and find opponents for a game.
5. v. intransitive, transitive To attempt to influence (a public official or decision-maker) in favor of a specific opinion or cause.

GNU Webster's 1913

1. n. (Arch.) A passage or hall of communication, especially when large enough to serve also as a waiting room. It differs from an antechamber in that a lobby communicates between several rooms, an antechamber to one only; but this distinction is not carefully preserved.
2. n. United States, United States, United States That part of a hall of legislation not appropriated to the official use of the assembly; hence, the persons, collectively, who frequent such a place to transact business with the legislators any persons, not members of a legislative body, who strive to influence its proceedings by personal agency; a group of lobbyists for a particular cause.
3. n. (Naut.) An apartment or passageway in the fore part of an old-fashioned cabin under the quarter-deck.
4. n. (Agric.) A confined place for cattle, formed by hedges. trees, or other fencing, near the farmyard.
5. v. U.S. To address or solicit members of a legislative body in the lobby or elsewhere, with the purpose to influence their votes; in an extended sense, to try to influence decision-makers in any circumstance.
6. v. U.S. To urge the adoption or passage of by soliciting members of a legislative body; ; -- also used with the legislators as object.

WordNet 3.0

1. v. detain in conversation by or as if by holding on to the outer garments of; as for political or economic favors
2. n. a group of people who try actively to influence legislation
3. n. a large entrance or reception room or area
4. n. the people who support some common cause or business or principle or sectional interest