alongside
Americanadverb
preposition
-
beside; by the side of.
The dog ran alongside me all the way.
-
Informal. alongside of, compared with.
Alongside of his brother, he is no student at all.
preposition
adverb
Etymology
Origin of alongside
Explanation
Use the adverb alongside when two things are right next to each other, like a boat and a dock or a hunter and her loyal dog. If you pull up alongside your friend's car in a parking lot, it means that you've parked directly beside it. Alongside can also imply cooperation, as when a baker's assistant works alongside him, kneading dough and wiping flour off the counter. Alongside was once a phrase, either "along side" or "along the side," both primarily used in a nautical sense, to talk about boats. In the 1700s it became a single word.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Investors are concerned that Alphabet faces a fresh threat from Nvidia’s plans to help fund the AI buildout alongside major Wall Street players.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
Many students balance classes and studying alongside part-time work, volunteering, sports clubs and societies.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
But today’s 40% offers real income, alongside real shock absorption to shaky equity markets.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
Tracking both alongside established climate indicators could help scientists determine how slow environmental changes affect human biology over periods of decades.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 15, 2026
During summers, Horace and Charlie often worked alongside Daddy as bellmen, wearing uniforms to work, carrying guests’ steamer trunks up to their rooms, and responding to guests’ requests.
From "Reaching for the Moon" by Katherine Johnson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
