What is "lobby"

Lobby \Lob"by\, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Lobbied; p. pr. & vb. n. Lobbying.] To address or solicit members of a legislative body in the lobby or elsewhere, with the purpose to influence their votes; in an extended sense, to try to influence decision-makers in any circumstance. [U.S.]
--Bartlett.

Lobby \Lob"by\, n.; pl. Lobbies. [LL. lobium, lobia, laubia, a covered portico fit for walking, fr. OHG. louba, G. laube, arbor. See Lodge.]

1. (Arch.) A passage or hall of communication, especially when large enough to serve also as a waiting room. It differs from an antechamber in that a lobby communicates between several rooms, an antechamber to one only; but this distinction is not carefully preserved.

2. That part of a hall of legislation not appropriated to the official use of the assembly; hence, the persons, collectively, who frequent such a place to transact business with the legislators; hence: any persons, not members of a legislative body, who strive to influence its proceedings by personal agency; a group of lobbyists for a particular cause; as, the drug industry lobby. [U. S.]

3. (Naut.) An apartment or passageway in the fore part of an old-fashioned cabin under the quarter-deck.

4. (Agric.) A confined place for cattle, formed by hedges. trees, or other fencing, near the farmyard.

   Lobby member, a lobbyist. [Humorous cant, U. S.]

Lobby \Lob"by\, v. t. To urge the adoption or passage of by soliciting members of a legislative body; as, to lobby a bill; -- also used with the legislators as object; as, to lobby the state legislatuire for protection. [U.S.]

1530s, "cloister, covered walk," from Medieval Latin laubia, lobia "covered walk in a monastery," from a Germanic source (compare Old High German louba "hall, roof;" see lodge (n.)). Meaning "large entrance hall in a public building" is from 1590s. Political sense of "those who seek to influence legislation" is attested by 1790s in American English, in reference to the custom of influence-seekers gathering in large entrance-halls outside legislative chambers.

"seek to influence legislation," 1826, American English, from lobby (n.). Related: Lobbied; lobbying.

Etymology 1 n. 1 An entryway or reception area; vestibule; passageway; corridor. 2 That part of a hall of legislation not appropriated to the official use of the assembly. 3 A class or group of people who try to influence public officials; collectively, lobbyists. 4 (context video games English) A virtual area where players can chat and find opponents for a game. 5 (context nautical English) An apartment or passageway in the fore part of an old-fashioned cabin under the quarter-deck. 6 A confined place for cattle, formed by hedges, trees, or other fencing, near the farmyard. vb. (context intransitive transitive English) To attempt to influence (a public official or decision-maker) in favor of a specific opinion or cause. Etymology 2

n. (context informal English) scouse (from lobscouse)

1. n. a large entrance or reception room or area [syn: anteroom, antechamber, entrance hall, hall, foyer, vestibule]

2. a group of people who try actively to influence legislation [syn: pressure group, third house]

3. v. detain in conversation by or as if by holding on to the outer garments of; as for political or economic favors [syn: buttonhole]

4. [also: lobbied]

Lobby may refer to:

• Lobby (room), an entranceway or foyer in a building
• Lobbying, the action or the group used to influence a viewpoint to politicians
• Lobby (food), a thick stew made in Leigh, Greater Manchester and North Staffordshire, not unlike Lancashire Hotpot
• Lobby (band), a Slovak Eurodance band
• The Lobby, (UK) parliamentary journalists receiving privileged political access in exchange for sourcing anonymity
• Lobby Hero, a play by Kenneth Lonergan
• Lurker in the Lobby: The Guide to the Cinema of H. P. Lovecraft, a non-fiction book by Andrew Migliore and John Strysik
• Hotel Lobby, an oil painting on canvas by American realist painter Edward Hopper
• The Lobby (improv), an improvisational comedy group based in Southern California

Lobby or lobbies is a traditional beef and potato stew or broth from Stoke-on-Trent.

Lobby was a Slovak Eurodance music band from 1995 to 2001.

Members were Martina "Osa" Ostatníková, Andrej Dziak, Milan Michalík, Karol "Strawberry" Bližnák and Mirec "Big Mouth" Babják.
Mirec left in 1997.

After releasing their debut album Hi Dee Ho! on the independent label E N A Records, they followed up with Power in Our Hands and Livin' Large on Sony's dance subsidiary Dance Pool.

A lobby is a room in a building used for entry from the outside. Sometimes referred to as a foyer or an entrance hall, it often is a large, vast room or complex of rooms (in a theatre, opera, concert hall, showroom, cinema, etc.) adjacent to the auditorium. It is a repose area for spectators and place of venues, especially used before performance and during intermissions but also as a place of celebrations or festivities after performance.

Many office buildings, hotels and skyscrapers go to great lengths to decorate their lobbies to create the right impression and convey an image, or "power lobby".

Since the mid-1980s, there has been a growing trend to think of lobbies as more than just ways to get from the door to the elevator but instead as social spaces and places of commerce. Some research has even been done to develop scales to measure lobby atmosphere to improve hotel lobby design.

Many places that offer public services, such as a doctor's office, use their lobbies as more of a waiting room for the people waiting for a certain service. In these lobbies it is common for there to be comfortable furniture, such as couches and lounge chairs, so that the customer will be able to wait in comfort. Also, there may be television sets, books, and/or magazines to help the customer pass time as they wait to be served.

Supertall skyscrapers can often have one or more of what is known as a sky lobby, an intermediate floor where people can change from an express elevator that stops only at the sky lobby to a local elevator which stops at every floor within a segment of the building.

Usually a foyer is a large, specially designed hall, but sometimes, it is a corridor surrounding the main hall. It is furnished and big enough to enable spectators to stroll, get together and relax. Foyers are commonly adorned with art works, permanent or temporary exhibitions related to the activity of the institution, and a refreshment room or buffet. Moreover, the foyer can be the main place of some events such as vernissage, meetings with the artists, actors' benefit, etc.

A foyer in a house is usually a small entry area or room by the front door. Other public rooms such as the living room, dining room, and family room typically attach to it, along with any main stairway. It was initially intended as an " airlock", separating the fireplace-heated rooms from the (colder, in winter) front entrance, where cold air infiltration made for cold drafts and low temperatures. It is commonly used for outer garment and umbrella storage for both residents and guests.

The word foyer comes from the French language and means "the place where the fire is kept".