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.
Both are co-corresponding authors of the Biohub preprint, alongside Biohub engineer Pavel Olshin.
From Science Daily ● Oct. 22, 2026
He made his film debut in 1962 alongside a young Robert Redford in War Hunt and years later re-teamed with Redford in the 1992 period drama A River Runs Through It, which starred Brad Pitt.
From BBC ● Oct. 22, 2026
If a state decides to fund services such as tutoring, therapy, school lunches, busing and on-campus nurses, then faith-based schools are entitled to participate alongside nonsectarian counterparts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 22, 2026
“It’s the same way as looking at our phones makes everyone feel sick,” said Ortega, who is also cast in the upcoming December comedy “The Gallerist,” alongside Natalie Portman.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
Death marched alongside the roughly 18,000 barely trained soldiers from both North and South.
From "American Spirits" by Barb Rosenstock
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
