aside

American  

[uh-sahyd] / əˈsaɪd /

adverb

1. on or to one side; to or at a short distance apart; away from some position or direction.

   to turn aside; to move the chair aside.

2. away from one's thoughts or consideration.

   to put one's cares aside.

3. in reserve; in a separate place, as for safekeeping; apart; away.

   to put some money aside for a rainy day.

4. away from a present group, especially for reasons of privacy; off to another part, as of a room; into or to a separate place.

   He took him aside and talked business.

5. in spite of; put apart; notwithstanding.

   all kidding aside; unusual circumstances aside.

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noun

• asides
  plural

1. a part of an actor's lines supposedly not heard by others on the stage and intended only for the audience.

2. words spoken so as not to be heard by others present.

3. a temporary departure from a main theme or topic, especially a parenthetical comment or remark; short digression.

idioms

1. aside from,

   1. apart from; besides; excluding.

      Aside from her salary, she receives money from investments.

   2. except for.

      They had no more food, aside from a few stale rolls.

aside British  

/ əˈsaɪd /

adverb

1. on or to one side

   they stood aside to let him pass

2. out of hearing; in or into seclusion

   he took her aside to tell her of his plan

3. away from oneself

   he threw the book aside

4. out of mind or consideration

   he put aside all fears

5. in or into reserve

   to put aside money for old age

6. (preposition)

   1. besides

      he has money aside from his possessions

   2. except for Compare apart

      he has nothing aside from the clothes he stands in

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noun

1. something spoken by an actor, intended to be heard by the audience, but not by the others on stage

2. any confidential statement spoken in undertones

3. a digression

aside More Idioms  

1. see all joking aside; lay aside; set aside; take aside.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• quasi-aside
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• asides
  plural

Etymology

Origin of aside

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at a- ¹, side ¹

Explanation

If something's aside, it's not in the middle of things — it's off to the side, either literally or figuratively, as with the papers and books you push aside on the couch, to make room to sit. When you ignore your conscience, you're pushing your best instincts aside. You can put money aside, to save it for the future. In a play, when an actor steps out of character and speaks directly to the audience, that's an aside. The expression "all joking aside," means "stop kidding around and get serious" as in, "All joking aside, you're not really going bungee jumping, are you?"

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

aside asides

"I've got a little bit put aside but nowhere near that much."

From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026

"She continued to paint until her final days, never setting aside her brush, and continued exploration of forever love and eternal soul," it added.

From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026

To mitigate the risk, it’s best to have money set aside in a liquid account that you can use without having to tap into your retirement investments.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026

“I don’t go that deep,” he says, brushing it aside when asked whether there are certain questions he’s trying to answer about being human.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 26, 2026

“It doesn’t mean people set aside their feelings. Or forgive and forget.”

From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes

Though a few ideological asides do provide some additional color as the night goes on.

From Salon ● Aug. 15, 2026

Patterson and editor Patrick J. Smith interweave scenes of intrigue and shocking violence, take liberties with Amziah’s storytelling asides and give us barn-burning musical sequences.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

She throws every tangentially relevant piece of information she can—talking points, asides about old campaigns, recommendations for where to spend time in Detroit, references to bills she’s worked on—into each response.

From Slate ● Jul. 30, 2026

Still, those were mostly charming asides for TikTok clout.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

On the contrary, the older player always showed the younger one affection and respect, often sending him friendly little notes and asides.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

Related Words

• alone
• away
• out
• separately