between

Pronunciation

• IPA: /bɪˈtwiːn/, /bə-/^[1][2]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English bitwene,^[3][4] inherited from Old English betwēonum, Mercian betwīnum,^[4][5] formed from Old English be- (“by”) + twēonum (“two each”), the second element being the dative plural of *twēon (“two each”),^[4][6][7] which is related to Gothic 𐍄𐍅𐌴𐌹𐌷𐌽𐌰𐌹 (tweihnai, “two each”) and to two, from Proto-Indo-European *dwo- (“two”).^[4][5][8] According to Barnhart between merges two Old English forms, betwēonum and betwēon.^[5] In Old English the numeral originally qualified the noun, as in be sǣm twēonum (“by seas twain”).^[9]

Earliest recorded meaning

In the space separating two things, midway; among; by turns (Old English, about 750, in Cynewulf's Elene).^[5][4]

Semantic evolution

Strictly the word applies to two things, but the OED notes that from its earliest appearance it was extended to more than two.^[4][2] Of time, “in the interval between two events”, it is recorded from the 12th century,^[10] and of a quantity or degree between two limits from 1711.^[10] A noun between, an interval or intermediate thing, dates from about 1616,^[7][11] and a short sewing needle has been called a between since 1801.^[11][2] Between-whiles, at intervals, is from the 1670s, and between a rock and a hard place from the 1940s, originally cowboy slang; the earlier phrase was between the beetle and the block.^[4] Betwixt and between is not recorded until the 19th century.^[9]

Timeline

• c. 750 – Old English betwēonum.^[5]
• c. 1131 – of time, in the interval.^[10]
• c. 1200 – bitwenen, in Layamon.^[5]
• 1225 – bitwene.^[12]
• c. 1616 – as a noun, an interval.^[7]
• 1670s – between-whiles.^[4]
• 1711 – of quantity or degree.^[10]
• 1801 – a kind of sewing needle.^[11]
• 1940s – between a rock and a hard place.^[4]

Modern meaning

Preposition

1. In or through the space or interval separating two things, times or limits: between the trees or between 11 and 12 o'clock.
2. Connecting or relating two or more things: air service between cities or the difference between them.
3. By the joint action or ownership of: between them, they saved enough.
4. Shared among: divided between his four grandchildren.
5. Expressing a choice of alternatives: a choice between staying and going.
6. In confidence: between you and me.

Adverb

1. In an intermediate space or time: two houses with a yard between.

Noun

1. A short needle with a small round eye, used for fine stitching.

Word family

• betweenness
• go-between
• in-between
• betweenwhiles
• tween
• betwixt and between

Related words

• betwixt
• twain
• two
• among
• twin

Usage notes

The rule that between is for two and among for more than two is a widely repeated tradition that the American Heritage Dictionary calls unjustified: between is used of things considered as distinct individuals, however many, and among of things considered as a mass.^[3] The OED likewise notes that between has always been used of more than two.^[4][2]

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
3. ^ a b The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (1992), 3rd ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
5. ^ a b c d e f Barnhart, Robert K. (1988), The Barnhart Dictionary of Etymology
6. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
7. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
8. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (2000), 4th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin
9. ^ a b Weekley, Ernest (1921), An Etymological Dictionary of Modern English, London: John Murray
10. ^ a b c d Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
11. ^ a b c Kay, Christian; Roberts, Jane; Samuels, Michael; Wotherspoon, Irené, eds. (2009), Historical Thesaurus of the Oxford English Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press; online edition (2024)
12. ^ Barnhart, Robert K., ed. (1995), The Barnhart Concise Dictionary of Etymology, New York: HarperCollins