aby

verb

ə-ˈbī 

variants or abye

abyed; abying or abyeing; abys or abyes

transitive verb

archaic

: to suffer a penalty for

Word History

Etymology

Middle English abien, abiggen, abuggen "to pay for, obtain at the cost of labor or suffering, redeem, pay a penalty for," from a-, weak perfective prefix (going back to Old English a-) + bien, biggen "to purchase, pay for" — more at abide, buy entry 1

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined above