Prepositional Phrases with 'BY'

• by accident         

E.g. I was so sleepy that I put salt in my coffee by accident.

• by all accounts   

E.g. By all accounts, Seville is a beautiful city.

• by appointment               

E.g. The museum is open at weekends by appointment.

• by the arm/hand              

E.g. He took me by the hand as we walked along the beach.

• by auction           

E.g. We're selling our antique furniture by auction.

• by birth                

E.g. I grew up in England but I'm Irish by birth.

• by bus/train/plane, etc.                

E.g. Are you going to go there by bus or by train?

• by chance            

E.g. I found some money in my jacket pocket by chance.

• by cheque           

E.g. I've never paid for anything by cheque.

• by day/night      

E.g. The Eiffel Tower looks spectacular by night.

• by design             

E.g. I became a teacher more by accident than by design.

• by the drozen    

E.g. I always buy eggs by the drozen. A drozen means 12.

• by far    

E.g. Before Sunset is by far my favourite film - I just love it.

• by hand                

E.g. My granduncle built this house by hand.

• by heart               

E.g. At school we had to learn poems by heart.

• by invitation       

E.g. Membership to the club is by invitation only.

• by land/sea/air 

E.g. I get sick whenever I travel by sea.

• by law   

E.g. Dog owners must have a licence for the pets by law.

• by luck  

E.g. They played badly but won the match by luck.

• by means of       

E.g. I was able to afford the car by means of a bank loan.

• by mistake          

E.g. I chose the wrong road by mistake. Now we're lost.

• by nature            

E.g. German people tend to be quite organised by nature.

• by no means      

E.g. It's by no means certain that the economy will improve.

• by now 

E.g. If you don't know me by now, you'll never know me.

• by oneself           

E.g. I don't mind spending time by myself.

• by phone             

E.g. Get in touch with me by phone if you need any help.

• by post 

E.g. Do you think it's safe to send cash by post.

• by request          

E.g. Guided tours of the gallery are available by request.

• by rights               

E.g. By rights, it's my turn to play but you can go ahead.

• by one's side      

E.g. He was by her side whenever she needed him.

• by surprise          

E.g. The unusual question took John by surprise.

• by the time         

E.g. I'll have gone to bed by the time you get home.

• by the way          

E.g. By the way, I won't be able to come to class next week.

• by word of mouth           

E.g. The best form of advertising is by word of mouth.