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

• near
• around
• next door to
• beside
• by
• at

Adverb

• almost
• nearly
• practically
• just about
• fairly
• about
• pretty much

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

Gene’s body was in another part of the house, a sort of mudroom, his cane and sunglasses next to him, the door open to the outside, where another dog, Nikita, ran back and forth, barking. —Joy Williams, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025

The victim told police that Ising had constantly harassed him at work for two years, sitting next to him during meals and joking about his inability to eat many foods because of his medical condition. —Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 24 Oct. 2025

Adverb

Just glad the world will now get to see what these incredible individuals next to me and off-camera have created. —Christopher Rudolph, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2025

The Goldwell Open Air Museum, next to the skeletal buildings of Rhyolite Ghost Town, is a large-scale sculpture installation created by a group of Belgian artists that’s complete with ghostly figures wearing white cloaks. —Graham Averill, Outside, 28 Oct. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Preposition

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

1596, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for next to

• accrue
• ado
• ainu
• aircrew
• airscrew
• anew
• askew
• baboo
• babu
• bamboo
• beaucoup
• bijou

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