Word Choice: Between vs. Among

Usually, we deal with homophones in our Word Choice posts. But today, we’re looking at two words that don’t sound even vaguely alike: ‘between’ and ‘among’. Despite differing in pronunciation, these terms do overlap in meaning. As such, it can be tricky to know which to use.

Between (Gaps and Connections)

‘Between’ can be a preposition or an adverb and has many definitions. However, two main uses are important for us here. One is to refer to a gap or space separating two things:

I swam between the sharks.

You shouldn’t snack between meals.

The other use is to indicate a connection involving two or more things:

There is a strong link between proofreading and academic achievement.

Tim, Eric and Melody argued between themselves.

In either case, ‘between’ is the correct term to use.

Among (Situation or Division)

‘Among’ (or ‘amongst’) also has several uses, always as a preposition. As above, though, we’re only concerned with two definitions here. The first is to indicate that something is situated within or in relation to several other things:

I swam among the sharks.

Here, it implies that the speaker had sharks all around them. The other use is to indicate a relationship, choice or division between three or more things:

The triplets argued among themselves.

As you can see, there are similarities between ‘between’ and ‘among’ in these uses. But are these terms interchangeable? If not, what is the difference?

Between or Among?

With the first definitions above, ‘between’ is only used when discussing two things (or groups of things), while ‘among’ is used for three or more things. For example, swimming ‘between’ two things implies passing through a gap; swimming ‘among’ several things implies being surrounded by them.

However, when discussing a relationship, the rule is slightly different. ‘Between’ is preferred when discussing several things that are individually named or identified, not just when describing two things. We can see this if we compare two of the examples above:

Tim, Eric and Melody argued between themselves.

The triplets argued among themselves.

In the first, we use ‘between’ because ‘Tim, Eric and Melody’ are named individuals. In the second, we use ‘among’ because ‘the triplets’ are unnamed.

‘Between’ is also preferred when talking about differences, so we might say:

There are many distinctions between shark species from different oceans.

This statement isn’t limited to just two species of shark; but since it refers to a difference, ‘between’ is still correct. Keep this in mind when discussing relationships between several things.