Amidst vs During - What's the difference?
amidst | during |
In the midst or middle of; surrounded or encompassed by; among.
* 1748 . David Hume. Enquiries Concerning the Human Understanding and Concerning the Principles of Morals. London: Oxford University Press, 1973. § 4.
* 1912 , (Edgar Rice Burroughs), (Tarzan of the Apes), Chapter 5
For all of a given time interval.
* 1661 , ,
*
* {{quote-magazine, year=2013, month=May-June, author=
, title= At any time or period within a given time interval.
* , chapter=4
, title=
As a preposition amidst
is in the midst or middle of; surrounded or encompassed by; among.As a proper noun during is
(rare).amidst
English
Alternative forms
* amidest (obsolete) * amiddst (qualifier) * amiddest (obsolete) * amydst (obsolete) * amyddst (qualifier) * amyddest (qualifier)Preposition
(English prepositions)- Be a philosopher ; but amidst all your philosophy, be still a man.
- Not so, however, with Tarzan, the man-child. His life amidst the dangers of the jungle had taught him to meet emergencies with self-confidence, and his higher intelligence resulted in a quickness of mental action far beyond the powers of the apes.
Synonyms
* amid * among * amongstUsage notes
As with other words with excrescent suffix , amidst is generally considered synonymous with simpler amid, and amid is preferred by style guides on both sides of the Atlantic.TimesOnline], [http://www.guardian.co.uk/styleguide/w The Guardian] and [http://www.hansard.ca/styleguide.pdf Hansard(Canadian parliament) Further, amidst /amid'' are similar in meaning to – but distinct from – ''amongst''/''among''. ''Amid]](st)'' denotes that something is "in the midst of", "surrounded by" other things, and is used when the idea of separate things is not prominent. ''[[among, Among(st)'' denotes that something is mingling with other separable things ("blessed art thou among women").
References
Anagrams
*during
English
Preposition
(English prepositions)The Life of the most learned, reverend and pious Dr. H. Hammond
- During the whole time of his abode in the university he generally spent thirteen hours of the day in study; by which assiduity besides an exact dispatch of the whole course of philosophy, he read over in a manner all classic authors that are extant
- They stayed together during three dances, went out on to the terrace, explored wherever they were permitted to explore, paid two visits to the buffet, and enjoyed themselves much in the same way as if they had been school-children surreptitiously breaking loose from an assembly of grown-ups.
Katrina G. Claw
Rapid Evolution in Eggs and Sperm, volume=101, issue=3, magazine=(American Scientist) , passage=Many genes with reproductive roles also have antibacterial and immune functions, which indicate that the threat of microbial attack on the sperm or egg may be a major influence on rapid evolution during reproduction.}}
Mr. Pratt's Patients, passage=I told him about everything I could think of; and what I couldn't think of he did. He asked about six questions during my yarn, but every question had a point to it. At the end he bowed and thanked me once more. As a thanker he was main-truck high; I never see anybody so polite.}}