besides

American  

[bih-sahydz] / bɪˈsaɪdz /

adverb

1. moreover; furthermore; also.

   Besides, I promised her we would come.

   Synonyms:

   further

2. in addition.

   There are three elm trees and two maples besides.

3. otherwise; else.

   They had a roof over their heads but not much besides.

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preposition

1. over and above; in addition to.

   Besides a mother he has a sister to support.

2. other than; except.

   There's no one here besides Bill and me.

besides British  

/ bɪˈsaɪdz /

preposition

1. apart from; even considering

   besides costing too much, the scheme is impractical

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1. anyway; moreover

adverb

1. as well

Commonly Confused

See beside.

Related Words

Besides, moreover both indicate something additional to what has already been stated. Besides often suggests that the addition is in the nature of an afterthought: The bill cannot be paid as yet; besides, the work is not completed. Moreover is more formal and implies that the addition is something particular, emphatic, or important: I did not like the house; moreover, it was too high-priced.

Etymology

Origin of besides

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English; beside, -s ¹

Example Sentences

Any color at all besides gray and beige.

From The Wall Street Journal

There’s little for consumers to do in this environment besides wait for rates to improve — or, more proactively, improve their credit scores to qualify for lower interest rates.

From MarketWatch

To secure Latin America in its economic embrace, the U.S. will have to offer something besides special forces raids, like a hemispheric manufacturing alliance.

From Barron's

The streets in my south-eastern suburb of the Venezuelan capital Caracas are quiet, besides the queues outside petrol stations, supermarkets and pharmacies.

From BBC

Fast forward two and a half decades, and innovations in AI, robotics and much else besides are emerging at an incredible rate.

From BBC