Compare the Difference Between Similar Terms

Difference Between

Home / Language / Grammar / Difference Between By and Beside

Difference Between By and Beside

October 21, 2018 Posted by Hasa

The key difference between by and beside is that by is a preposition that can indicate time, place or an agent of action whereas bedside only indicates a place.

By and beside are two prepositions in the English language. Both these prepositions can indicate the location of an entity. In this sense, they have the same meaning, i.e., next to. The preposition beside only indicates place or location whereas preposition by has various meanings and uses.

CONTENTS

1. Overview and Key Difference
2. What Does By Mean
3. What Does Beside Mean
4. Similarities Between By and Beside
5. Side by Side Comparison – By vs Beside in Tabular Form
6. Summary

What Does By Mean?

The preposition by has multiple meanings and uses. Some of these meanings are as follows:

Time

Ex: I’ll be there by 10 am.

Agent of Action

Ex: Three terrorists were killed by the army.

Manner of Action

Ex: You can turn off the alarm by pressing this button.

Place or Location

Ex: There is a lovely cabin by the lake.

In this article, we are mostly interested in this last meaning, i.e., place or location. By means ‘close to’, or ‘at the side of’. Beside is another synonym for by. In this sense, there is no difference between by and beside. Let’s look at some more example sentences to clarify this.

Their stranded vehicle was found by the roadside.

He built a small cottage by the river.

There’s a nice café by the public library.

Difference Between By and Beside

Figure 01: He lived in a cabin by the lake.

However, it is important to note that we can use by to refer to ‘movement past something’; for example, “He drove by her house yesterday”. The above sentence means that he drove past her house.

What Does Beside Mean?

Beside is a preposition that indicates location. It is a synonym for ‘next to’ or ‘at the side of the’. Beside is a rather formal preposition. Thus, it is not commonly used in day-to-day conversations. Some example sentences with this preposition are as follows:

I kept the book on the small table beside the bed.

The photographer asked him to sit beside the principal.

He didn’t notice her husband, who was sitting beside her.

She chose the small room beside the kitchen.

Key Difference Between By and Beside

Figure 02: There is a small table beside the bed.

Moreover, beside also acts as a linking adverb to mean ‘in addition’. For example, “What other authors do you like beside from Agatha Christie?” However, some people argue the correct usage for this function is not beside, but besides. However, as Oxford dictionary usage notes indicate “there is a little logical basis for such a view”, and most people use these words interchangeably.

What is the Similarity Between By and Beside?

  • Both prepositions have the same meaning when referring to a place or location
  • For example, “cottage beside the lake” has the same meaning as “cottage by the lake”.

What is the Difference Between By and Beside?

By is a preposition and an adverb, that is able to convey numerous meanings while beside is a preposition indicating location. By can indicate time, place or an agent of action, etc.  while bedside only indicates a place. Therefore, this is the difference between by and beside.

Difference Between By and Beside in Tabular Form

Summary – By vs Beside

In summary, both by and beside can indicate the location of an entity. In this sense, they have the same meaning. However, the preposition beside only indicates place or location whereas the preposition by has various meanings and uses. Hence, this is the key difference between by and beside.

Image Courtesy:

1.”1850882″ by Pexels (CC0) via pixabay
2.”3218833″ by meganlynchnz (CC0) via pixabay

Related posts:

Difference Between Noun and PronounDifference Between Noun and Pronoun Difference Between Prepositions and ConjunctionsDifference Between Prepositions and Conjunctions Difference Between Slang and Dialect Difference Between Single and Double Quotes Difference Between Paradox and Oxymoron

Filed Under: Grammar

About the Author: Hasa

Hasanthi is a BA graduate majoring in English, French, and Translation. With over 8 years of experience in editing, proofreading, and writing, she has a passion for the humanities. Her interests span literature, linguistics, history, culture, and cuisine, showcasing her diverse skill set.

Comments

  1. josette says

    December 18, 2020 at 5:08 pm

    great job. the explanations are clear and comprehensive. thanks alot

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Request Article

Featured Posts

Difference Between Coronavirus and Cold Symptoms

Difference Between Coronavirus and Cold Symptoms

Difference Between Coronavirus and SARS

Difference Between Coronavirus and SARS

Difference Between Coronavirus and Influenza

Difference Between Coronavirus and Influenza

Difference Between Coronavirus and Covid 19

Difference Between Coronavirus and Covid 19

You May Like

Difference Between Economies of Scale and Returns to Scale

Difference Between Domain names .COM and .NET

Difference Between Network Security and Information Security

Difference Between Eagle and Hawk

Difference Between Mendelian and Non Mendelian Inheritance

Difference Between Mendelian and Non Mendelian Inheritance

Latest Posts

  • What is the Difference Between Vizsla and German Shorthaired Pointer
  • What is the Difference Between Cuboidal and Columnar Epithelium
  • What is the Difference Between Pseudomonas and Burkholderia
  • What is the Difference Between Bioavailability and Bioequivalence
  • What is the Difference Between Predictive and Prescriptive Analytics
  • What is the Difference Between Tarsal and Metatarsal
  • Home
  • Vacancies
  • About
  • Request Article
  • Contact Us

Copyright © 2010-2018 Difference Between. All rights reserved. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy: Legal.