between and among, interchangeable

Ju · Jul 28, 2011

1. I am searching the differences between when, while and as in this and other website. I still don't get what are they?

2. I am searching the differences among when, while and as in this and other website. I still don't get what are they?
__________________________________________________________________

Are between and among interchangeable ?

Ju

Rover_KE · Jul 28, 2011

No, they are not.

You need to say

'I am searching for the differences between when, while and as.'.

between

preposition

4
indicating a connection or relationship involving two or more parties:
with reference to a choice or differentiation involving two or more things being considered together:
you have to choose between two or three different options.

(OED)

Rover

Ju · Jul 28, 2011

Rover_KE said:
No, they are not.

You need to say

'I am searching for the differences between when, while and as.'.

(OED)

Rover

Then how about the situations of using among?

Ju

Rover_KE · Jul 28, 2011

See this FrazeIt site for more examples than you could possibly need:

http://fraze.it/n_search.jsp?q=among&l=0&t=0&sugg=off

Rover

Hedwig · Jul 28, 2011

As a non-native I think I understand your confusion. Teachers often explain this automatically: between for two and among for three or more. And it's probably OK to avoid confusion at an early stage, when students are learning the basics, but further on they should be taught that it's not that simple.

One day I found myself using between for more than two and it felt natural, so I started to pay attention to how natives used it and I realised it wasn't wrong, depending on the circumstances.

Some further reading (scroll down the the fourth paragraph):
Non-Errors

Not a teacher

Ju · Jul 29, 2011

Hedwig said:
As a non-native I think I understand your confusion. Teachers often explain this automatically: between for two and among for three or more. And it's probably OK to avoid confusion at an early stage, when students are learning the basics, but further on they should be taught that it's not that simple.

One day I found myself using between for more than two and it felt natural, so I started to pay attention to how natives used it and I realised it wasn't wrong, depending on the circumstances.

Some further reading (scroll down the the fourth paragraph):
Non-Errors

Not a teacher

So, between and among are interchangeable but between is in common use. Am I right?

Ju

Ju · Jul 29, 2011

Ju said:
So, between and among are interchangeable but between is in common use. Am I right?

Ju

Sorry, I need to clarify as I have a child in grade seven that she needs to know things clearly.

Ju

Rover_KE · Jul 29, 2011

Ju said:
So, between and among are interchangeable but between is in common use. Am I right?

Ju

They are not interchangeable.

Please read the earlier answers again.

Rover

5jj · Jul 29, 2011

You can see me in this photograph standing between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] my aunt and uncle.
The river runs between [STRIKE]among [/STRIKE]those two hills.
There is a ten-minute break between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] lessons.
The village of Meonstoke is between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] Winchester, Southampton.and Portsmouth.
I divided/shared the sweets between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] Luke and Emma.
I divided the sweets between/among my six nieces and nephews. (Some people claim this must be among, but between is commonly used.)
Agreement has been reached between:tick: among (?) the four parties.
You can see Lindsay there, [STRIKE]between [/STRIKE] among all the visitors.
Your watch is somewhere [STRIKE]between[/STRIKE] among all the mess in your bedroom.
Jimmy Carter stands out [STRIKE]between[/STRIKE] among American presidents as the one who ....
What is the difference between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] gold and golden?
What is the difference between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] gold, golden, gilded and gilt?

Ju · Jul 29, 2011

fivejedjon said:
You can see me in this photograph standing between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] my aunt and uncle.
The river runs between [STRIKE]among [/STRIKE]those two hills.
There is a ten-minute break between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] lessons.
The village of Meonstoke is between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] Winchester, Southampton.and Portsmouth.
I divided/shared the sweets between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] Luke and Emma.
I divided the sweets between/among my six nieces and nephews. (Some people claim this must be among, but between is commonly used.)
Agreement has been reached between:tick: among (?) the four parties.
You can see Lindsay there, [STRIKE]between [/STRIKE] among all the visitors.
Your watch is somewhere [STRIKE]between[/STRIKE] among all the mess in your bedroom.
Jimmy Carter stands out [STRIKE]between[/STRIKE] among American presidents as the one who ....
What is the difference between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] gold and golden?
What is the difference between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] gold, golden, gilded and gilt?

Thank you. I can't say the strict defination of using among and between, but now I fully understand which one I should put in different situations.

Ju

albertino · Jul 29, 2011

fivejedjon said:
You can see me in this photograph standing between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] my aunt and uncle.
The river runs between [STRIKE]among [/STRIKE]those two hills.
There is a ten-minute break between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] lessons.
The village of Meonstoke is between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] Winchester, Southampton.and Portsmouth.
I divided/shared the sweets between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] Luke and Emma.
I divided the sweets between/among my six nieces and nephews. (Some people claim this must be among, but between is commonly used.)
Agreement has been reached between:tick: among (?) the four parties.
You can see Lindsay there, [STRIKE]between [/STRIKE] among all the visitors.
Your watch is somewhere [STRIKE]between[/STRIKE] among all the mess in your bedroom.
Jimmy Carter stands out [STRIKE]between[/STRIKE] among American presidents as the one who ....
What is the difference between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] gold and golden?
What is the difference between [STRIKE]among[/STRIKE] gold, golden, gilded and gilt?

(Not a teacher)
With due respect to the above posters,
Ju, may I also refer you to the following extract from P.105 of "Chambers Essential English Grammar and Usage", where it states:
Between or Among?
1. A group of two or very few specified individuals share something between them:
The fees are divided between the writer and the publisher.
the love between man and wife.
Duties are shared between Geoffrey,Isobel and myself.
Agreement has been reached between management, trade union officials and workers.

Among is not used if the group only consists of two:
After the divorce, she divided her time equally between her parents.

2. Use between or among:
with a specified number of people or things:
a prize of $2 million, to be divided between (or among) the top eight players.
with a group of people or things that are not individually specified:
The profits are shared out between (or among) the employees.
Divide the sweets between (or among) yourselves.

Hope that helps.

SoothingDave · Jul 29, 2011

In general, use "between" when discussing two things, "among" when more than 2.

"Just between you and me" but "Since we're among friends."

Exception when contrasting or comparing things within a group. Then use "between." "She asked us to explain the differences between the Ford, Toyota and Chevy trucks."

5jj · Jul 29, 2011

SoothingDave said:
In general, use "between" when discussing two things, "among" when more than 2.

"Just between you and me" but "Since we're among friends."

Exception when contrasting or comparing things within a group. Then use "between." "She asked us to explain the differences between the Ford, Toyota and Chevy trucks."

OK as a general guideline, but there are quite a few exceptions, some of which can be found in my sentences in post #9.

Also:

Look - between the trees -you can see him there. There may be far more than two trees. He is standing on the other side of them.

He is standing among the trees. He is in the middle of a group of trees.

konungursvia · Jul 29, 2011

To me, between sounds one-dimensional, as in between two points, whereas among sounds two or three-dimensional, as in among the many.

5jj · Jul 29, 2011

konungursvia said:
To me, between sounds one-dimensional, as in between two points, whereas among sounds two or three-dimensional, as in among the many.

There is a lot to be said for that. Would you agree that two of my sentences could , admittedly very crudely, be paraphrased in the way I have attempted below?

1. The village of Meonstoke is between Winchester, Southampton.and Portsmouth.

The village of Meonstoke is between Winchester and Southampton, and between Southampton and Portsmouth, and between Portsmouth and Winchester.

2. Look - between the trees -you can see him there.

Look - between any particular two trees at a time - you can see him there.

konungursvia · Jul 29, 2011

fivejedjon said:
There is a lot to be said for that. Would you agree that two of my sentences could , admittedly very crudely, be paraphrased in the way I have attempted below?

1. The village of Meonstoke is between Winchester, Southampton.and Portsmouth.

The village of Meonstoke is between Winchester and Southampton, and between Southampton and Portsmouth, and between Portsmouth and Winchester.

2. Look - between the trees -you can see him there.

Look - between any particular two trees at a time - you can see him there.

Yes, I see it exactly the way you do. And I don't think it's my British passport or Brummie mummie, but my ear for AmE, which makes the perception quite... well, not universal, but certainly broad. If the Americans and Brits agree on anything, it can't be anything to stiff at. (sniff?)

5jj · Jul 29, 2011

konungursvia said:
Yes, I see it exactly the way you do. And I don't think it's my British passport or Brummie mummie, but my ear for AmE, which makes the perception quite... well, not universal, but certainly broad. If the Americans and Brits agree on anything, it can't be anything to stiff at. (sniff?)

Thanks.

Sniff at, IMO.

between and among, interchangeable

Ju

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