next to

1 of 2

preposition

1

: immediately following or adjacent to

2

: in comparison to

next to you I'm wealthy

next to

2 of 2

adverb

: very nearly : almost

it was next to impossible to see in the fog

Synonyms

Preposition

• about
• around
• by
• near
• nigh

Adverb

• about
• all but
• almost
• borderline
• fair [chiefly British]
• fairly
• feckly [chiefly Scottish]
• more or less
• most
• much
• near
• nearly
• nigh
• practically
• somewhere
• virtually
• well-nigh

Examples of next to in a Sentence

Preposition

enjoys living next to the ocean

next to the war, the flagging economy was the biggest campaign issue

Adverb

bought it for next to nothing

Recent Examples on the Web

Preposition

In its way, A Real Pain is a more complex film than last year's Oscar-winning Zone of Interest, a brutally cold but also rather obvious study of a Nazi family living out a suburban fantasy next to a concentration camp. —Tom Gliatto, People.com, 11 Dec. 2024

An employee of the Volkswagen plant in Zwickau stands next to the VW logo on the factory premises during an information event organised by the Works Council of Volkswagen Saxony in Zwickau, eastern Germany, on October 28, 2024. —Sam Meredith, CNBC, 11 Dec. 2024

Adverb

The left winglet of a Boeing 757 clipped the horizontal stabilizer of an empty Delta Air Lines Bombardier CRJ-900 that was parked next to it, the FAA said. —Travis Andersen, BostonGlobe.com, 6 Mar. 2023

Mulaney crouches next to his son, who is wearing a red and gray striped onesie. —Georgia Slater, Peoplemag, 6 Mar. 2023

Word History

First Known Use

Preposition

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

1596, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

next to

1 of 2 preposition

: immediately following : being close to

next to the head of her class

next to

2 of 2 adverb

: very nearly : almost