‘By and By’ Meaning: How to Use ‘By and By’ in a Sentence

“By and by” is an American English adverbial phrase that means “soon” or “before long.” The etymology of “by and by” has its roots in Middle English, with the original “bi and bi” phrase meaning “one by one,” or “at once.” Today, “by and by” is a common phrase that means “in a short while.”

When written as “by-and-by,” the word is a noun that means “a future time.” Like the adverb, “by-and-by” implies an unspecified soonness. The hyphens in this word add clarity to distinguish the adverb from the noun, and “by-and-by” often follows “the.” An example sentence using this noun form would be “We’ll see you in the by-and-by.”

In the example sentences below, you’ll note that the meaning of “by and by” is eventually, or in a little while:

1. 1. “A new song is becoming popular and will be trending by and by.” Here, “by and by” implies that a song is gaining traction and will be trending in due course.
2. 2. “I’ll get to Ireland by and by; I’ve wanted to go for a while.” In this example sentence, the subject expresses an interest in traveling to Ireland and feels they’ll get there eventually.
3. 3. “We’ll meet again in the sweet by-and-by.” “Sweet by-and-by” is a phrase that also means at an unspecified time in the future. The phrase was popularized by the Christian hymn "The Sweet By-and-By" (1868) with lyrics by S. Fillmore Bennett and music by Joseph P. Webster. The opening verse of that song is “In the sweet by-and-by / We shall meet on that beautiful shore.”
4. 4. “Our guests may be walking the side path, so they’ll be arriving by and by.” The guests in this sentence will get to their destination at a future time.

The phrases “by and by” and “by the by” may seem like synonyms, but they have unique meanings. “By and by” means “in a short period,” whereas “by the by” means “incidentally” or “of secondary importance.” For example, “I’ll be out of the office next week, by the by.”

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