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.
She pointed to a desire to boost domestic production in agriculture and other sectors, alongside a wish to propagate "family values" and liberties.
From Barron's ● Oct. 9, 2026
"We are delivering the biggest reforms to policing in over 200 years, alongside record funding to protect Muslim and Jewish people and places of worship," she added.
From BBC ● Oct. 8, 2026
Adele Lim, who co-wrote Chu’s 2018 film, will serve as showrunner and will executive produce the series alongside Kwan, Chu and “Crazy Rich Asians” movie producers Nina Jacobson and Brad Simpson.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 8, 2026
The North American IPO was one of the key measures, alongside a $5.4 billion sale of superstores and other businesses and a $13 billion share buyback.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026
Water was heavy to carry, and their plan before the eruption was to hike alongside plenty of rivers and streams.
From "Mountain of Fire" by Rebecca E. F. Barone
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.
