Among vs While - What's the difference?
among | while |
Denotes a mingling or intermixing with distinct or separable objects. (See Usage Note at amidst)
Denotes a belonging of a person or a thing to a group.
* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-08-10, volume=408, issue=8848, magazine=(The Economist)
, title= Denotes a sharing of a common feature in a group.
*
An uncertain duration of time, a period of time.
During the same time that.
* , chapter=12
, title= * 1948 , , North from Mexico / The Spanish-Speaking People of The United States , J. B. Lippincott Company, page 25,
* {{quote-magazine, date=2013-06-07, author=David Simpson
, volume=188, issue=26, page=36, magazine=(The Guardian Weekly)
, title= Although.
* 2013 September 28, (Kenan Malik), "
(Northern England, Scotland) Until.
* Beaumont and Fletcher
As long as.
* I. Watts
To pass (time) idly.
* Longfellow
To loiter.
As a preposition among
is denotes a mingling or intermixing with distinct or separable objects (see usage note at amidst).As a noun while is
an uncertain duration of time, a period of time.As a conjunction while is
during the same time that.As a verb while is
to pass (time) idly.among
English
Alternative forms
* amonge (archaic) * amoung (obsolete)Preposition
(English prepositions)Can China clean up fast enough?, passage=All this has led to an explosion of protest across China, including among a middle class that has discovered nimbyism.}}
- Forasmuch as many have taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us […]
Usage notes
* For the comparison of among'' with ''between'', see the usage notes in ''between . * Due to a belief that "amongst" is an archaic/Commonwealth variant, many Americans use "among" exclusively.Synonyms
* amongst (variant of among) * amidst * amidSee also
* betweenStatistics
*Anagrams
*while
English
Noun
(en noun)- He lectured for quite a long while .
Conjunction
(wikipedia while) (English Conjunctions)Mr. Pratt's Patients, passage=While the powwow was going on the big woman came back again. She was consider'ble rumpled and scratched up, but there was fire in her eye.}}
- While De Anza was exploring the Bay of San Francisco, seeking a site for the presidio, the American colonists on the eastern seaboard, three thousand miles away, were celebrating the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Fantasy of navigation, passage=Like most human activities, ballooning has sponsored heroes and hucksters and a good deal in between. For every dedicated scientist patiently recording atmospheric pressure and wind speed while shivering at high altitudes, there is a carnival barker with a bevy of pretty girls willing to dangle from a basket or parachute down to earth.}}
London Is Special, but Not That Special," New York Times (retrieved 28 September 2013):
- While Britain’s recession has been deep and unforgiving, in London it has been relatively shallow.
- I may be conveyed into your chamber; I'll lie under your bed while midnight.
- Use your memory; you will sensibly experience a gradual improvement, while you take care not to overload it.
Verb
(whil)- The lovely lady whiled the hours away.
- (Spectator)