by-product

noun

by-prod·​uct ˈbī-ˌprä-(ˌ)dəkt 

variants or byproduct

plural by-products or byproducts

1

: something produced in a usually industrial or biological process in addition to the principal product

Sulfured molasses is a by-product of sugar refining.

—Wayne Gisslen

Small amounts of amyloid beta are generated as an ordinary metabolic byproduct and are believed to do no harm, but larger amounts seem to be tied to Alzheimer's.

—January W. Payne

Meat by-products are parts other than meat, including organs, blood and bone …

—Amy D. Shojai

Among the most commonly occurring and thoroughly studied chlorination byproducts are trihalomethanes …

—Consumer Reports

2

: a secondary and sometimes unexpected or unintended result

Japan's success as an international exporter of manufactured goods is a by-product of the volatile trade among Japanese cities.

—Jane Jacobs

As investor confidence grows, overspending and overborrowing are typically byproducts of an aging bull market.

—Carolyn Bigda

One of the by-products of the information age is an increasing number of data formats.

—John Was

Synonyms

• derivate
• derivation
• derivative
• offshoot
• outgrowth
• spin-off

Examples of by-product in a Sentence

hydrogen is one by-product of that chemical reaction

Recent Examples on the Web

Indeed, one of the by-products of this ongoing back-and-forth has been a new spate of material from a superstar who’s notoriously been stingy with his releases in between album cycles, as Lamar has already more than doubled his 2023 output with 2024 diss tracks alone. —Jason Lipshutz, Billboard, 8 May 2024

And that’s the rub: Long waits and staff stretched thin are the natural by-products of overexpansion. —Maria Aspan, Fortune, 2 May 2024

Much more technical detail would get into Field AI’s IP, says Agha, but the point is that real-time world modeling becomes a by-product of Field AI’s robots operating in the world rather than a prerequisite for that operation. —IEEE Spectrum, 30 Apr. 2024

Motherhood is Beautiful Low self-esteem among mothers can often be a by-product of changes to their bodies during and after birth. —Tyler Shepherd, USA TODAY, 21 Apr. 2024

Fear was the by-product of the ego; love was the by-product of the soul that remained pure, in the moment, especially at the time of death. —Christopher Fiorello, The New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2024

Regardless of where or how it’s made, rum must be distilled from sugarcane—either the juice extracted from the pressed sugarcane stalks; cane syrup, which is the juice boiled down to remove some of the water; or molasses, a sugarcane by-product. —Tony Sachs, Robb Report, 29 Mar. 2024

Glenfiddich, for example, has started using AI to minimize energy consumption and manage by-products more efficiently, contributing to a more sustainable whiskey production process. —Neil Sahota, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024

Ebb’s facility, which will eventually run day and night, will generate up to 20 liters a minute of hydrogen as a by-product. —IEEE Spectrum, 26 Mar. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1849, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

by-product

noun

by-prod·​uct

ˈbī-ˌpräd-(ˌ)əkt

: a product or result produced in addition to the main product or result