along

[uh-lawng, uh-long]

preposition

1. through, on, beside, over, or parallel to the length or direction of; from one end to the other of.

   to walk along a highway; to run a border along a shelf.

2. during; in the course of.

   Somewhere along the way I lost my hat.

3. in conformity or accordance with.

   I plan to revise the article along the lines suggested.

adverb

1. by the length; lengthwise; parallel to or in a line with the length or direction.

   He ran along beside me.

2. with a progressive motion; onward.

   The police ordered the line to move along.

3. (of time) some way on.

   along toward evening.

4. in company; in agreement (usually followed bywith ).

   I'll go along with you. He planned the project along with his associates.

5. as a companion; with one.

   She took her brother along.

6. from one person or place to another.

   The order was passed along from the general to the captain and from the captain to a private.

7. at or to an advanced place or state.

   Work on the new ship is quite far along.

8. as an accompanying item; on hand.

   Bring along your umbrella.

9. Chiefly Southern U.S. and British Dialect.,  along of,

   1. owing to; because of.

      We weren't invited, along of your rudeness.

   2. in company with.

      You come along of me to the store.

verb phrase

1. get along.,  get.

along

/ əˈlɒŋ /

preposition

1. over or for the length of, esp in a more or less horizontal plane

   along the road

adverb

1. continuing over the length of some specified thing

2. in accompaniment; together with some specified person or people

   he says he'd like to come along

3. forward

   the horse trotted along at a steady pace

4. to a more advanced state

   he got the work moving along

5. accompanying; together with

   consider the advantages along with the disadvantages

Word History and Origins

Origin of along¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English; Old English andlang, equivalent to and- (cognate with Old Saxon, Old Norse and-, Gothic and(a)-, Old High German ant-; akin to Greek antí- and Latin ante-, prefix with the original sense “opposite, facing”) + lang ; long ¹. answer

Word History and Origins

Origin of along¹

Old English andlang, from and- against + lang _long ¹ ; compare Old Frisian andlinga, Old Saxon antlang

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. all along, all the time; throughout.

   I knew all along that it was a lie.

2. be along, to arrive at a place; come.

   They should be along soon.

More idioms and phrases containing along

• all along
• all along the line
• be along
• come along
• follow along
• get along
• go along
• play along
• run along
• string along

Example Sentences

That's all we know, along with clues that they were on their knees, it was freezing cold, and whatever happened was "completely legal in this country".

Read more on BBC

Those sectors outperformed along with gold, the best performing asset class, up 16.4% in that quarter.

Read more on Barron's

It gave businesses more power to write off major purchases, along with spending on research and development.

Read more on MarketWatch

Bryan has released songs titled “Open the Gate,” “Condemned,” “Something in the Orange,” “Revival” and “God Speed,” along with an album called “The Great American Bar Scene.”

Read more on Wall Street Journal

The voyage brings together many of the same researchers from the 2022 voyage, along with new collaborators and partners, to again turn wonder into discovery.

Read more on Science Daily

Related Words

• also 
• as well 
• simultaneously 
• too