Confused Words: Between and Among

Confused Words: Between and Among

Many English learners (and native speakers, too!) get confused about when to use between and among. Both are prepositions, and both can refer to relationships, groups, or positions. At first glance, they seem almost interchangeable, but there is a clear difference in meaning. Confused Words: Between and Among

Traditionally, teachers say that between is used for two things and among for more than two. This rule works sometimes, but it doesn’t tell the whole story.

Let’s look at the real difference.

The Real Difference

BETWEEN

We use between when we are thinking about things individually — even if there are more than two.

AMONG

We use among when we are thinking about things as a group or collective whole.

This simple distinction explains everything much more clearly.

Examples

✔️ Between (individual items)

• There isn’t much difference between English, German and Dutch.
• Our house is between the woods, the brook and the village road.
• They shared the profit between the five of them.

✔️ Among (a group)

• Among all the candidates, only a few satisfy our needs.
• Peter has always felt safe among his friends and family.
• I’m sure you’ll find the old photo albums among the books in the library. Confused Words: Between and Among

How to Use “Between” in Context

Connection/Link Between

• The connection between the two criminal offences was obvious.
• There is a strong link between the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Health.

Difference/Distinction Between

• There was a clear difference between the two brothers both physically and mentally.

Parallel Between

• The professor tried to draw a parallel between the two cases.

Contrast/Similarity Between

• John drew a contrast between Eurovision today and in the past.
• Lara noticed a strong similarity between Sara and her sister.

Between You and Me

Used when speaking confidentially.

• Just between you and me, I think they’re going to get divorced.

In Between

• If you want to lose weight, try to avoid binge eating in between meals. Confused Words: Between and Among

How to Use “Among” in Context

Among Friends

• This helps build and maintain good relationships among friends and relatives.

Among Other Things

Meaning: as well as; in addition to other matters.

• Among other things, the presidents discussed environmental issues.

Among Themselves/Ourselves/Yourselves

Meaning: with each other.

• The neighbours are always arguing among themselves.
• Don’t talk too much about it, not even among yourselves.

Among vs Amongst

Both forms are correct and mean the same.

• Their house was hidden among/amongst the hills.
• Paul was the only one among/amongst his friends who opposed the trip.

Amongst is more formal and much less common in modern British English, but it is still perfectly acceptable.

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