a‧mong S2 W1 / əmʌŋ / ( also a‧mongst / əmʌŋst / ) 介词

1 in or through the middle of a group of people or things :

The girl quickly disappeared among the crowd.

I could hear voices coming from somewhere among the bushes.

We walked among the chestnut woods on the mountain slopes.

She began rummaging among the books on her desk. → between

2 with a particular group of people :

Jim relaxed, knowing he was among friends .

3 used to say that many people in a group have the same feeling or opinion, or that something affects many people in a group :

The problem is causing widespread concern among scientists.

The general opinion among police officers was that the law should be tightened.

The changes will mean 7,000 job losses among railway workers.

4 used to talk about a particular person, thing, or group as belonging to a larger group :

She was the eldest among them.

Innocent civilians were among the casualties.

My grandfather had among his possessions a portrait by Matisse.

Representatives were chosen by the students from among themselves.

5 among other things/places/factors etc used to say that you are only mentioning one or two people or things out of a much larger group :

At the meeting they discussed, among other things, recent events in Japan.

6 if something is divided or shared among a group of people, each person is given a part of it :

A father’s property was divided among his heirs.

7 among yourselves/ourselves/themselves with each other :

The allies found it hard to agree among themselves.

Grammar among, between

When you are talking about position, use among if there are more than two people or things around someone or something, and between if there is just one person or thing on each side :

They hid among the reeds.

I put my bag on the ground between my feet.

► Among is not commonly used after words such as ‘relationship’ and ‘difference’, even when more than two people or things are involved. Use between :

the relationship between these three sectors of the economy