[MSL]

"beside" 和 "besides"

The difference between "beside" and "besides"

  This is an important question (topic). The spelling difference between beside and besides is a small one, but their meanings and uses are quite different.
 "Beside" (with no "s" at the end) is used only as a preposition, which means there is always a noun following it. (It means either “next to” or “compared to,” as shown in the examples below.) The first meaning, “next to,” is more common:

• He sat beside (= next to) her during dinner.
• These problems seem unimportant beside (= compared to) the potential benefits of the new future.

"Besides" (with an "s" at the end) can also be used as a preposition, but it means “except” or “in addition to,” as in these examples:

• There's no one there besides (= except) me.
• He wants to learn other languages besides (= in addition to) Chinese and Spanish.

However, "besides" can also be used as an adverb, to introduce additional info. As you may see in the examples below, "besides" can be placed either before the additional information or after it. When it is placed before the new information, a comma (",") should be inserted after it.

• They serve sushi and many other foods besides. ("besides" comes after the new information "and many other foods")
• The play is excellent, and besides, the tickets are cheap. ("besides" comes before the new information "the tickets are cheap")

I hope you understood it!