Talk:bey

To keep someone at bey

Can someone add an entry for "bey" as used in the expression "to keep someone at bey"?

I can't because all I know is that that expression exists. No idea how else "bey" could be used or where the expression comes from (or its literal meaning). Gronky (talk) 21:37, 27 September 2013 (UTC)

You mean at bay. Equinox ◑ 21:46, 27 September 2013 (UTC)

Nope. At bey. Here are some examples via google:

• "keep him at bey"
• "kept at bey"
• "keep it at bey"

And if you think it's just a common typo, try any similar search with a different vowel typo and you'll get zero hits.

So, anyone know more about this word and expression? Gronky (talk) 05:35, 22 November 2013 (UTC)

It looks like an uncommon, phonetic misspelling of bay (at bay). In books (accessed in aggregate via Google Books), "him at bey" gets only two relevant hits. (Two other hits are of books that spell Beirut "Bey-rout".) - -sche (discuss) 05:54, 22 November 2013 (UTC)

— root word is probably “abeyance” as “held in abeyance” has a similar meaning to “kept at bey”

Incorrect. "At bay" is a very common hunting term. If you keep someone or something at bay, you maintain a safe distance from them. It is totally unhelpful to postulate an infantile misspelling such as "at bey". "In abeyance" is unrelated, meaning "in suspension", from the Old French abeer = "to gape after"--noun abéance. Never mind Google hits--just look it up in a good dictionary. Bjenks (talk) 15:12, 26 February 2021 (UTC)