"BY-PASS" vs. "BYPASS"

[J N Winkler]

Anyone know what the etymology of the word "bypass" is? I wonder if that might provide a clue as to the hyphen. I'm remembering how some British writers traditionally wrote "to-day" or "to-morrow" (example: I seem to recall that in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe when Peter wants to withdraw the camp across the river, Aslan says the White Witch "will not attempt an attack to-day"). I read somewhere that once upon a time it was actually two words, "to day," that first got joined by a hyphen and later became one word, I guess sort of similar to how some people now spell "e-mail" without the hyphen.

Open compound to hyphenated compound to closed compound is a fairly standard transition.

Bye-pass is another old (in my experience, exclusively British) alternate spelling.

In names it was common to capitalize both syllables (By-Pass, not By-pass) and quite frequently bypass was used as an adjective instead of being left to stand alone as a noun:  e.g., "Guildford-Godalming By-Pass Road."

[adventurernumber1]

Interesting observation. I personally use "bypass" rather than "by-pass," but I can see why the latter is used officially as it sounds like it may have been the original spelling. Personally, I prefer the former, probably because it is what I am used to in casual spelling and I have seen this variation most of the time in my life. But I can see how the hyphenated variation of the word may have been more common practice back in the day, and hence it is still standard in the MUTCD.

[tolbs17]

The funny thing is that these signs use both BYPASS and BY-PASS. The one on the right is newer though. I honestly don't have a emotion against them but it just appears that BYPASS is the old way of signing it. By the way, it's not called NC 55 bypass anymore so therefore both of the BYPASS on the signs should be removed.

[Scott5114]

The funny thing is you bumped a five-year-old thread to post something that didn't even belong in this thread to begin with. Get thee to one of the unusual sign threads.

[tolbs17]

The funny thing is you bumped a five-year-old thread to post something that didn't even belong in this thread to begin with. Get thee to one of the unusual sign threads.

I didn't know where to post them so I  just posted them here.

[Scott5114]

Bumping a 5-year-old thread is only the solution if the problem is specifically wanting to continue the conversation from the old thread.

- Showing a new example of a thing others already posted examples of in that thread: no
- Talking about something similar but not the same as the old thread: no
- Talking about something totally off-topic: no
- Peekaboo: no

[Molandfreak]

Honestly, if I were in AASHTO, I would try to eliminate the bypass routes altogether. Why not just move the mainline to the road that benefits more long-distance travelers? Having a business loop through town just makes a lot more sense than the opposite. The only one that I'm ok with keeping is Bypass US 17 in Elizabeth City, NC, since there are both a business and a bypass route that are different from the mainline there, but one of those could just as easily be re-designated as an alternate.