Illustration of goby
plural gobies also goby
: any of numerous spiny-finned fishes (family Gobiidae) that usually have the pelvic fins united to form a ventral sucking disk
went by; gone by; going by; goes by
: pass sense 3b
as time goes by
1
a
: to be guided or directed by : act in accordance with
going by the rules
went by what we'd been told
b
: to form an opinion from
You can't go by appearances.
2
: to be known by (a name)
goes by her birth name
goes by an alias
3
: to go (somewhere) especially to see someone
I went by your house yesterday.
Examples of goby in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026 Ross Gudgeon, Australia - Close-Up Photographer of the Year A yellow clown goby guards its eggs in Anilao, Philippines. —Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 12 Feb. 2026
María Teresa Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2026 Black, who went by the name Nuk, was shot dead on a neighborhood street in Pompano Beach. —Ted Scouten, CBS News, 22 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for goby
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Noun
Blennies and gobies are tiring to look at, darting every which way above. —Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026 Ross Gudgeon, Australia - Close-Up Photographer of the Year A yellow clown goby guards its eggs in Anilao, Philippines. —Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 12 Feb. 2026
Verb
That afternoon went by without incident. —María Teresa Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2026 Black, who went by the name Nuk, was shot dead on a neighborhood street in Pompano Beach. —Ted Scouten, CBS News, 22 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for goby
Cite this Entry
“Goby.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/dictionary/goby. Accessed 25 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
goby
noun
go·by ˈgō-bē 
plural gobies also goby
: any of numerous spiny-finned fishes that often have the pelvic fins united to form a sucking disk
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