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Added 9 October 2026

byword

/ˈbaɪ.wə(ɹ)d/ noun

Latin root: proverbium Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about byword at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

A condensed but memorable saying embodying some important fact of experience that is taken as true by many people.

Origin

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”).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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