Uploaded May 2025 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Confused about when to use “by” and when to use “with” in English? You’re not alone! In this class, I’ll explain the differences between these two important words and show you how to use them correctly in everyday English. At the end of the lesson, take the short quiz to test your understanding and practice what you’ve learned. engvid.com/confusing-english-grammar-by-or-with
More English grammar for beginners:
MOST, MOST OF, or ALMOST? youtu.be/ZtQv-T492mg
"I USED TO", "I GOT USED TO", "I'M USED TO": What's the difference?! youtu.be/DmLVH5Y096Q
In this lesson:
0:00 How to use "BY" and "WITH" in English
0:30 Using "BY" with time
2:19 Using "BY" for who did something
4:48 Using "BY" for how you do something
6:28 Using "by _____+ing"
7:33 Using "with" for accompaniment
9:03 Using "with" to describe a person
10:54 Using "with" to talk about objects
13:39 "BY" or "WITH"? The Main Differences
TRANSCRIPT:
Hello, my name is Emma, and today we are going to learn about two really important prepositions.
We're going to learn about the word "by" and the word "with".
Many learners confuse these two words, but they're very important in English.
We use them all the time.
So today I'm going to tell you what are the differences between "by" and "with", and when
do we use them?
So let's first start with the word "by", B-Y.
So we use it in different situations.
The first one I'm going to talk about is when we use it with time.
When we're talking about time, we can use "by" with the time.
So for example, "Arrive by 4pm."
So what does this mean if you see "by" here?
What that means is you want to arrive before or at 4pm, not after.
So no later than 4pm.
So we use this a lot.
Somebody might say, "I'll arrive by 6pm."
This means they're going to get there before 6pm or right at 6pm.
Here's another example.
"I will be there 7pm."
So we can write in the word "by".
"I will be there by 7pm."
So 7pm is the latest; I might be a little bit earlier.
Here's another example.
Imagine you're at work.
You are going to send an email to somebody.
You can say, "I will send you the email by 6pm."
This means the person will get the email at 6pm or before 6pm.
So again, we use "by" with time very frequently to mean before or at a certain time.
Let's look at some other ways we use the word "by".
So "by" can also be used to answer the question of who.
Who did something?
So let me show you.
Romeo and Juliet is a very famous play or story.
Who wrote it?
Romeo and Juliet was written by Shakespeare.
So in this, we want to know who did it; Shakespeare did it, so we can write "by".
You'll notice "by" is often used with what we call the passive voice or the passive tense.
So that is where we have the "be" verb, and then we have our main verb, like "written".
We have many videos, actually, on the passive tense if you don't know it, but the main point
here is that when you're using the passive voice or the passive tense, we often use "by",
and "by" is used to say who did something.
Let's look at another example.
Imagine somebody says, "Who built the pyramids?"
The pyramids were built by the Egyptians, not aliens, as some people might think.
So the pyramids were built by the ancient Egyptians.
Okay, here's another question.
So again, we want to know who.
Who ate the cake?
The cake was eaten by the dog.
So again, this is where the answer to who is.
Who did it?
The dog.
Who did it?
The Egyptians.
Who did it?
Shakespeare.
So I want you to try to do the next one.
What's the name of the latest song, Taylor Swift?
What do you think goes here?
Okay, if you said "by", you're correct.
So we use "by" when we're saying who did something.
It answers this question.
The album was by the Beatles.
The song was by Taylor Swift.
The painting was by Picasso.
Another important way we use the word "by" is we use it to talk about methods.
How are we doing something?
So I'll give you some examples of this.
We can use it with nouns, especially when we're talking about transportation.
So the method of how you're going somewhere.
For example, I'm going to Japan by train.
Or I'm going to Australia by plane.
I am going home by foot.
So you can use...
When you're talking about transportation, you can use "by" and then the mode of transportation.
We also use "by" a lot when we're talking about communication, the method of communication.
So, we use it a lot with the word "email".
By email, by phone, by chat. […]
Confused about when to use “by” and when to use “with” in English? You’re not alone! In this class, I’ll explain the differences between these two important words and show you how to use them correctly in everyday English. At the end of the lesson, take the short quiz to test your understanding and practice what you’ve learned. engvid.com/confusing-english-grammar-by-or-with
More English grammar for beginners:
MOST, MOST OF, or ALMOST? youtu.be/ZtQv-T492mg
"I USED TO", "I GOT USED TO", "I'M USED TO": What's the difference?! youtu.be/DmLVH5Y096Q
In this lesson:
0:00 How to use "BY" and "WITH" in English
0:30 Using "BY" with time
2:19 Using "BY" for who did something
4:48 Using "BY" for how you do something
6:28 Using "by _____+ing"
7:33 Using "with" for accompaniment
9:03 Using "with" to describe a person
10:54 Using "with" to talk about objects
13:39 "BY" or "WITH"? The Main Differences
TRANSCRIPT:
Hello, my name is Emma, and today we are going to learn about two really important prepositions.
We're going to learn about the word "by" and the word "with".
Many learners confuse these two words, but they're very important in English.
We use them all the time.
So today I'm going to tell you what are the differences between "by" and "with", and when
do we use them?
So let's first start with the word "by", B-Y.
So we use it in different situations.
The first one I'm going to talk about is when we use it with time.
When we're talking about time, we can use "by" with the time.
So for example, "Arrive by 4pm."
So what does this mean if you see "by" here?
What that means is you want to arrive before or at 4pm, not after.
So no later than 4pm.
So we use this a lot.
Somebody might say, "I'll arrive by 6pm."
This means they're going to get there before 6pm or right at 6pm.
Here's another example.
"I will be there 7pm."
So we can write in the word "by".
"I will be there by 7pm."
So 7pm is the latest; I might be a little bit earlier.
Here's another example.
Imagine you're at work.
You are going to send an email to somebody.
You can say, "I will send you the email by 6pm."
This means the person will get the email at 6pm or before 6pm.
So again, we use "by" with time very frequently to mean before or at a certain time.
Let's look at some other ways we use the word "by".
So "by" can also be used to answer the question of who.
Who did something?
So let me show you.
Romeo and Juliet is a very famous play or story.
Who wrote it?
Romeo and Juliet was written by Shakespeare.
So in this, we want to know who did it; Shakespeare did it, so we can write "by".
You'll notice "by" is often used with what we call the passive voice or the passive tense.
So that is where we have the "be" verb, and then we have our main verb, like "written".
We have many videos, actually, on the passive tense if you don't know it, but the main point
here is that when you're using the passive voice or the passive tense, we often use "by",
and "by" is used to say who did something.
Let's look at another example.
Imagine somebody says, "Who built the pyramids?"
The pyramids were built by the Egyptians, not aliens, as some people might think.
So the pyramids were built by the ancient Egyptians.
Okay, here's another question.
So again, we want to know who.
Who ate the cake?
The cake was eaten by the dog.
So again, this is where the answer to who is.
Who did it?
The dog.
Who did it?
The Egyptians.
Who did it?
Shakespeare.
So I want you to try to do the next one.
What's the name of the latest song, Taylor Swift?
What do you think goes here?
Okay, if you said "by", you're correct.
So we use "by" when we're saying who did something.
It answers this question.
The album was by the Beatles.
The song was by Taylor Swift.
The painting was by Picasso.
Another important way we use the word "by" is we use it to talk about methods.
How are we doing something?
So I'll give you some examples of this.
We can use it with nouns, especially when we're talking about transportation.
So the method of how you're going somewhere.
For example, I'm going to Japan by train.
Or I'm going to Australia by plane.
I am going home by foot.
So you can use...
When you're talking about transportation, you can use "by" and then the mode of transportation.
We also use "by" a lot when we're talking about communication, the method of communication.
So, we use it a lot with the word "email".
By email, by phone, by chat. […]
