Buy

• POS: Noun, Verb (usu participle), Verb (intransitive), Verb (transitive)

CIDE DICTIONARY

Buy, v. t. [OE. buggen, buggen, bien, AS. bycgan, akin to OS. buggean, Goth. bugjan.].

•  To acquire the ownership of (property) by giving an accepted price or consideration therefor, or by agreeing to do so; to acquire by the payment of a price or value; to purchase; -- opposed to sell.  [1913 Webster]

  "Buy what thou hast no need of, and ere long thou wilt sell thy necessaries."  [1913 Webster]
•  To acquire or procure by something given or done in exchange, literally or figuratively; to get, at a cost or sacrifice; to buy pleasure with pain.  [1913 Webster]

  "Buy the truth and sell it not; also wisdom, and instruction, and understanding."  [1913 Webster]

To buy again. See Againbuy. [Obs.] Chaucer. -- To buy off. (a) To influence to compliance; to cause to bend or yield by some consideration; as, to buy off conscience. (b) To detach by a consideration given; as, to buy off one from a party. -- To buy out (a) To buy off, or detach from. Shak. (b) To purchase the share or shares of in a stock, fund, or partnership, by which the seller is separated from the company, and the purchaser takes his place; as, A buys out B. (c) To purchase the entire stock in trade and the good will of a business. -- To buy in, to purchase stock in any fund or partnership. -- To buy on credit, to purchase, on a promise, in fact or in law, to make payment at a future day. -- To buy the refusal (of anything), to give a consideration for the right of purchasing, at a fixed price, at a future time.

Buy, v. i. 

 To negotiate or treat about a purchase.  [1913 Webster]
"I will buy with you, sell with you."  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Buy, v. & n.
--v. (buys, buying; past and past part. bought)
1 tr. a obtain in exchange for money etc. b (usu. in neg.) serve to obtain (money can't buy happiness).
2 tr. a procure (the loyalty etc.) of a person by bribery, promises, etc. b win over (a person) in this way.
3 tr. get by sacrifice, great effort, etc. (dearly bought; bought with our sweat).
4 tr. sl. accept, believe in, approve of (it's a good scheme, I'll buy it; he bought it, he's so gullible).
5 absol. be a buyer for a store etc. (buys for Selfridges; are you buying or selling?).
--n. colloq. a purchase (that sofa was a good buy).

Idiom

best buy the purchase giving the best value in proportion to its price; a bargain. buy in
1 buy a stock of.
2 withdraw (an item) at auction because of failure to reach the reserve price. buy into obtain a share in (an enterprise) by payment. buy it (usu. in past) sl. be killed. buy off get rid of (a claim, a claimant, a blackmailer) by payment. buy oneself out obtain one's release (esp. from the armed services) by payment. buy out pay (a person) to give up an ownership, interest, etc. buy-out n. the purchase of a controlling share in a company etc. buy over bribe. buy time delay an event, conclusion, etc., temporarily.
buy up
1 buy as much as possible of.
2 absorb (another firm etc.) by purchase.

Etymology

OE bycgan f. Gmc

THESAURUS

Buy

abide by, accede, accept, accept for gospel, accept implicitly, acclaim, acquiesce, acquiesce in, acquire, advantageous purchase, agree, agree to, agree with, applaud, approach, assent, bargain, be certain, believe, believe without reservation, bribe, buy back, buy in, buy into, buy off, buy on credit, buy up, buying, buying power, buying up, catalog buying, cheer, coemption, complete a purchase, comply, consent, consumer power, consumer sovereignty, consumerism, corner, cornering, corrupt, credit, emption, engross, fix, get, get at, get to, give faith to, give the nod, good buy, good pennyworth, grease, grease the palm, hail, have, hire purchase, hold with, impulse buying, in toto, installment buying, lubricate, mail-order buying, make a buy, marketing, money illusion, monopolize, nod, nod assent, obtain, pay off, pennyworth, procure, purchase, purchasing, purchasing power, put faith in, reach, rebuy, rebuying, receive, redeem, regrate, repurchase, set store by, shopping, shopping spree, sop, square, steal, suborn, subscribe to, swallow, take, take care of, take for granted, take kindly to, take on faith, take on trust, take stock in, tamper with, tickle the palm, trust, vote for, welcome, window-shopping, yes, yield assent

ROGET THESAURUS

Buy

Purchase

VB buy, purchase, invest in, procure, rent, repurchase, buy in, keep in one's pay, bribe, suborn, pay, spend, make a purchase, complete a purchase, buy over the counter, shop, market, go shopping.