Beneath vs Below
There is a subtle difference between Beneath and Below, but they are often confused due to the appearing similarity between their meanings. The word beneath is generally understood in the sense of ‘under’. On the other hand, the word below is used in the sense of ‘lower than’. This is the main difference between the two words. It is important to note that both the words, namely, beneath and below are used as adverbs. At most of the times the word below replaces the word beneath. How is it possible? Does that mean there is really no actual difference between below and beneath? The answers are given in this article.
What does Beneath mean?
As said in the introduction, beneath has the meaning ‘under.’ Consider the two sentences given below to understand how beneath is used:
He slept beneath the tree.
He hides himself beneath the table.
In both the sentences, you can find that the word beneath is used in the sense of ‘under’ and hence, the meaning of the first sentence would be ‘he slept under the tree’, and the meaning of the second sentence would be ‘he hides himself under the table’. Therefore, if you substitute under for beneath the meanings of the sentences will not change.
Another interesting fact about beneath is that it is mainly used in a literal or formal style. You never hear someone using beneath in their daily speech unless they are in some kind of an academic place, may be conducting a lecture. Therefore, in daily life, when we are using colloquial language, the word beneath is often replaced by under or below.
What does Below mean?
Unlike the word beneath, the word below usually means ‘lower than.’ Consider these two sentences given below:
He secured below 50 marks in the examinations.
His batting average is below 50.
In both the sentences, you can find that the word below is used in the sense of ‘lower than’ and hence, the meaning of the first sentence would be ‘he secured lower than 50 marks in the examinations’, and the meaning of the second sentence would be ‘his batting average is lower than 50’.
It is interesting to note that the word below is sometimes used in the sense of ‘under’ as in the following sentence.
Look at the examples given below.
In this sentence, the word below is used in the sense of ‘under’ and hence, the meaning of this sentence would be ‘look at the examples given under’. Note that due to this fact that below sometimes means under, you have the liberty to substitute below with under.
What is the difference between Beneath and Below?
• The word beneath is generally understood in the sense of ‘under’.
• On the other hand, the word below is used in the sense of ‘lower than’. This is the main difference between the two words.
• The word below is sometimes used in the sense of ‘under.’
• So, sometimes, below can also be replaced by under.
• The word beneath is mainly used in a literal or formal style.
• Therefore, in daily usage, beneath is replaced by under and below, according to the situation.
These are the differences between the two words, namely, beneath and below.