alongside

American  

[uh-lawng-sahyd, uh-long-] / əˈlɔŋˈsaɪd, əˈlɒŋ- /

adverb

1. along, by, at, or to the side of something.

   We brought the boat alongside.

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preposition

1. beside; by the side of.

   The dog ran alongside me all the way.

2. Informal. alongside of, compared with.

   Alongside of his brother, he is no student at all.

alongside British  

/ əˈlɒŋˌsaɪd /

preposition

1. (often foll by of) along the side of; along beside

   alongside the quay

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adverb

1. along the side of some specified thing

   come alongside

Etymology

Origin of alongside

First recorded in 1700–10; along + side ¹

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

See Examples For:

alongside

Muñoz wrote on Instagram, alongside photos of Rodrigo with the guitar.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 3, 2026

But even in 2026, Abuja can still look half-built, its pockmarked downtown home to modern office buildings alongside empty lots and even farms that pre-date its founding.

From Barron's ● Oct. 3, 2026

Zuckerberg spoke alongside Wang at the same keynote address, wearing his new Hillsong pastor drip, the T-shirt this time emblazoned with the slogan “Building is my love language.”

From Slate ● Oct. 3, 2026

“The bigger question is how that IRA fits alongside their taxable and Roth accounts.”

From MarketWatch ● Oct. 3, 2026

I open my eyes and see JP and Alex floating alongside me like feathers in a breeze.

From "The Manifestor Prophecy" by Angie Thomas