byword
English
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byword
- /ˈbaɪ.wə(ɹ)d/ UK
- /ˈbaɪ.wɚd/ US
Where it comes from
From Middle English byword, byworde (“proverb”), from Old English bīword, bīwyrd, bīwyrde (“proverb, household word", also "adverb”), from Proto-West Germanic *bīwurdī, equivalent to by- + word. Compare Latin proverbium, which byword may possibly be a translation of. Cognate with Old High German pīwurti (“proverb”). Compare also Old English bīspel (“proverb, example”), bīcwide (“byword, proverb, tale, fable”), Dutch bijwoord (“adverb”).
noun bywords
- A proverb or proverbial expression, common saying; a frequently used word or phrase.
- A characteristic word or expression; a word or phrase associated with a person or group.
- Someone or something that stands as an example (i.e. metonymically) for something else, by having some of that something's characteristic traits. Illustrious unfortunates attract a wider sympathy, not because their griefs are more intense, but because, being set on lofty pedestals, they the better serve mankind as instances and bywords of calamity.
- An object of notoriety or contempt, scorn or derision. He hath made me also a byword of the people […]
- A nickname or epithet.
Translations
Every language
noun a proverb
| Español | refrán, proverbio, estribillo |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 속담 sokdam |
| 日本語 | ことわざ kotowaza, 諺 kotowaza |
| 中文 | 格言 géyán, 民諺 /民谚 mínyàn |
| Português | dito |
| Français | proverbe |
| Deutsch | Sprichwort |
| Italiano | proverbio |
| Русский | погово́рка pogovórka, при́тча во язы́цех prítča vo jazýcex, прибау́тка pribaútka |
noun someone who stands for something else
| Русский | олицетворение olicetvorenije |
|---|
Talk about this word "byword." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/byword. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. byword. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/byword "byword." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/byword.Cite this
@misc{byword_2026,
title = {byword},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/byword},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
