lobby
//ˈlɒb.i//
Forms
- Plural
- lobbies
- present (v1)
- lobby
- past (v2)
- lobbied
- past participle (v3)
- lobbied
- present participle
- lobbying
- 3rd person singular
- lobbies
Definitions
1.An entryway or reception area; vestibule; passageway; corridor.
- I had to wait in the lobby for hours before seeing the doctor.
2.That part of a hall of legislation not appropriated to the official use of the assembly.
3.A class or group of interested people who try to influence public officials; collectively, lobbyists.
- The influence of the tobacco lobby has decreased considerably in the US.
4.A virtual area where meeting attendees can await admittance from an authorized person.
1.To attempt to influence (a public official or decision-maker) in favor of a specific opinion or cause.
- For years, pro-life groups have continued to lobby hard for restrictions on abortion.
- Policing the relationship between government and business in a free society is difficult. Businesspeople have every right to lobby governments, and civil servants to take jobs in the private sector.
- Allen Gregory DeLongpre: Yeah, it's not a big deal. I lobbied for fuel-cell technology on Capitol Hill. I'm friends with Sandy Bullock, really good friends. Who cares? It's not a pissing contest, right, J?
Frequency
Overall
Rare· #4299
By learning goal
- Everyday conversation
- Rare
- General reading & writing
- Rare
- Academic
- Rare
- Literature
- Rare
Related words
Synonyms
Etymology
From Medieval Latin lobia, lobium, laubia (“a portico, covered way, gallery”), borrowed from Frankish *laubijā (“arbour, shelter”), related to Old English lēaf (“foliage”). More at leaf. Doublet of leaf, lodge, and loggia.