lobby

noun lob·by \ ˈlä-bē \

|Updated on: 13 Jun 2018

Definition of lobby

plural lobbies

1 : a corridor or hall connected with a larger room or series of rooms and used as a passageway or waiting room: such as

a : an anteroom of a legislative chamber; especially : one of two anterooms of a British parliamentary chamber to which members go to vote during a division

b : a large hall serving as a foyer (as of a hotel or theater)

2 : a group of persons engaged in lobbying especially as representatives of a particular interest group

the gun lobby

the oil lobby

See lobby defined for English-language learners

See lobby defined for kids

Examples of lobby in a Sentence

I'll meet you in the lobby after the show.
The proposed new law is supported by the oil lobby.

Recent Examples of lobby from the Web

This winter, sea water poured into her luxury building's lobby and underground garage.

— philip marcelo, The Christian Science Monitor, "Boston hosts international mayors to address threats of rising sea levels," 6 June 2018
On May 14, police responded to a call in the 7000 block of Cradlerock Way at approximately 5:29 p.m. where a woman had been followed into an apartment building lobby and her purse stolen from a shopping cart.

— jess nocera, Howard County Times, "Columbia man charged with string of robberies targeting elderly women," 6 June 2018
This winter, sea water poured into her luxury building's lobby and underground garage.

— philip marcelo, courant.com, "Flooding A Threat To GE's New Boston Headquarters," 6 June 2018
These students and their parents not only beat the NRA lobby in Florida — for the first time anyone can remember — with small but politically significant changes in the last legislative session, but their best work is yet to come.

— fabiola santiago, miamiherald, "Here’s the real ‘Hogg Effect’ coming to a city near you: Effective political action," 5 June 2018
Upgrades include facade updates, new window, renovation to common areas and bathrooms, a new lobby and fitness center, conference room and snack area.

— meredith cohn, baltimoresun.com, "Airport area office building to get extensive upgrades," 5 June 2018
But the hotel's lobby was filled with conspicuously muscular men speaking American-accented English.

— joshua berlinger, CNN, "North Korea looms large in Singapore, but China takes front billing," 4 June 2018
Police in neighboring Bronxville say mail was recently stolen from the deposit slot in the post office lobby.

— Fox News, "Mail thefts of about $660K plague New York county," 1 June 2018
The shop is across the lobby from DHG’s latest restaurant, Legacy Records, in Henry Hall, a Hudson Yard apartment building that feels more like a hotel.

— nina sparling, Vogue, "Parcelle, a New Shop From the Team Behind Charlie Bird, Takes the Stress Out of Wine-Buying," 31 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'lobby.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of lobby

Medieval Latin lobium gallery, of Germanic origin; akin to Old High German louba porch

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1593

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

lobby Synonyms

Synonyms

entranceway, entry, entryway, foyer, hall, hallway, vestibule;

door, doorway, entrance, portal, threshold;

Other Architecture Terms

buttress, casita, cornice, fanlight, garret, lintel, parapet, pilaster, plinth

lobby

verb

Definition of lobby

lobbied; lobbying

intransitive verb

: to conduct activities aimed at influencing public officials and especially members of a legislative body on legislation

transitive verb

1 : to promote (something, such as a project) or secure the passage of (legislation) by influencing public officials

lobby a bill through Congress

2 : to attempt to influence or sway (someone, such as a public official) toward a desired action

lobbying senators for tax reform

—

lobbyer

noun

—

lobbyism

play \ˈlä-bē-ˌi-zəm\ noun

—

lobbyist

play \ˈlä-bē-ist\ noun

See lobby defined for English-language learners

Examples of lobby in a Sentence

an organization that has been lobbying for reform of the tax laws
The health-care industry has lobbied against the proposal.
an organization that has been lobbying Congress for reform of the tax laws
a player who has lobbied hard to be included in the team's starting lineup
I lobbied our company for a new computer.

Recent Examples of lobby from the Web

The person believed from his experience that the Hapsburg group lobbied in the United States and knew that Manafort knew that as well, the agent wrote.

— Time, "Robert Mueller's Team Accuses Paul Manafort of Trying to Tamper With Witnesses," 4 June 2018
The group collected more than 142,000 signatures on a petition, lobbied Congress and enticed thousands of people to flood the DEA's website with their opposition.

— lisa gutierrez, kansascity, "What you need to know about kratom as the feds crack down on the herbal supplement," 31 May 2018
Requests for this review came from both the Psychiatric Service Dog Association, which is worried about discrimination against the disabled, and Airlines for America, an airline industry lobbying group.

— wes siler, Outside Online, "You May Never Fly with Your Fake Service Dog Again," 30 May 2018
That includes time spent lobbying Congress and representing workers in disciplinary actions — practices Trump wants unions to pay for themselves.

— gregory korte, USA TODAY, "Trump signs executive orders aimed at loosening clout of federal labor unions," 25 May 2018
In 2016, the year of the previous 60-day legislative session, lobbying groups reported spending $9.5 million.

— tom loftus, The Courier-Journal, "A tobacco giant spent far more than anyone on lobbying in 2018," 21 May 2018
Once farmers hit their limit, they were cut off, says Janse Rabie, who represents the South African agriculture lobbying group Agri SA.

— rachel becker, The Verge, "Today wasn’t Day Zero in Cape Town, but the water crisis isn’t over," 11 May 2018
The nation’s real estate broker lobbying group said the law should be delayed until building codes are changed to account for home growers.

— josh wingrove, Bloomberg.com, "Trudeau Presses for Legal Marijuana This Summer as Senate Wavers," 3 May 2018
In the interest of full disclosure, Ungar added that his daughter works for the Columbus lobbying group promoting the measure.

— thomas jewell, cleveland.com, "Cleveland Heights council may lock and load on gun resolution," 2 May 2018

First Known Use of lobby

1820

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

See Words from the same year

NEW! Time Traveler

LOBBY Defined for English Language Learners

lobby

noun

Definition of lobby for English Language Learners

: a large open area inside and near the entrance of a public building (such as a hotel or theater)
: an organized group of people who work together to influence government decisions that relate to a particular industry, issue, etc.

lobby

verb

Definition of lobby for English Language Learners

: to try to influence government officials to make decisions for or against something
: to try to get something you want by talking to the people who make decisions