Among vs amongst: is there a difference, and which should you use?

Among and amongst mean the same thing: surrounded by, in the middle of, one of, or shared within a group. Among is standard in every variety of English; amongst is a chiefly British variant that can sound formal or old-fashioned to American readers, so if you're unsure, write among. The memory trick: amongst carries the same extra -st as whilst, so if you would write while, write among.

So the letter was found among her papers and the letter was found amongst her papers are equally correct. The choice is one of register and audience. Edit a sentence for an American newspaper and the change usually goes one way: The plan is popular amongst commuters becomes The plan is popular among commuters, because amongst would read there as formal or British. The harder choices sit next door: among or between, and among or amid.

Among vs amongst at a glance

Is amongst British or American?

Mostly British. The American dictionary Merriam-Webster lists the word as among, “or less commonly amongst,” and Dictionary.com labels amongst “chiefly British.” A British reference, the Oxford Learner's Dictionaries, treats it as an ordinary alternative: another form of among, with no regional or formal label at all. Its sibling whilst is marked “especially British English, formal” in the same dictionary, a fair guide to how the -st family reads outside Britain. In practice:

• Writing American English: use among. Amongst isn't wrong, but in a news story, a grant report or a novel set in Ohio it can read as a deliberately British or old-fashioned touch.
• Writing British English: either is correct. Read the sentence aloud and keep the one that sounds right, then use it consistently.
• Writing for an international audience, as in documentation or academic papers: use among, which is neutral everywhere.
• Writing dialogue: amongst can mark a voice, such as a British character or one who likes to sound formal, even in an otherwise American book.

If you follow a house style, it settles the question. If you don't, note your choice on the project's style sheet along with while or whilst, so a long manuscript doesn't switch halfway through.

Among or between?

You may have been taught that between is for two and among for three or more. That rule is a simplification. Merriam-Webster's usage note calls the two-only idea unfounded and points out that between has been used for more than two since Old English. The real difference is about relationships, not numbers:

• Between is for distinct parties, each relating to the others individually, however many there are: a treaty between three countries, choose between the red, the blue and the green, the differences between Python, Ruby and Go.
• Among is for a group taken as a whole, or for something spread or shared through it: popular among students, divided among the heirs, a rumor spreading among the staff.

With exactly two, between is the only choice: between you and me, never among you and me. The Google developer documentation style guide draws the same line for technical writers: between for distinct things, among for things that are part of a group, so services are shared among multiple clients, not between them.

Among or amid (and amidst)?

Amid, with its own -st form amidst, means in the middle of something. The Oxford Learner's Dictionaries label it formal and give two senses: “in the middle of or during something, especially something that causes excitement or fear” (he finished his speech amid tremendous applause) and “surrounded by something” (amid lemon groves).

A working rule covers most sentences. Use among for people and for things you could count: among the guests, among the files, among the ruins of three cities. Use amid for a mass, a mood or an event you can't count: amid the smoke, amid rumors of a sale, amid the confusion. Amid can take a plural when it means surrounded by, as in the lemon groves, but among needs separate members to be among. Among the confusion is the slip to watch for.

Among and amongst in sentences

Surrounded by, or one of a group:

1. The cabin sits among tall pines, a mile from the road.
2. I found the missing contract among last year's receipts.
3. Her second novel is among the best books I read this year.
4. Among the forty applicants, only two had worked in radio.
5. Among other things, the report recommends a later start time.

Shared, divided or spread through a group:

6. The prize money was split among the five finalists.
7. The editors argued among themselves for an hour.
8. The rumor spread quickly among the night staff.
9. The new rota is popular among nurses and unpopular among managers.
10. There is no agreement among historians about the date.

British English, with amongst:

11. She was happiest amongst friends, and quietest amongst family.
12. The idea is popular amongst younger readers.
13. Amongst the letters was one she had never posted.

Neighbors: between and amid:

14. The treaty between the three valley towns set the water rights for a century.
15. The meeting ended amid shouting.
16. Amid the smoke, the firefighters counted heads; among them was the new recruit.

Common mistakes with among

• The two brothers split the money among themselves. → between themselves (two people)
• The rumor spread between the staff. → among the staff (one group, not separate pairs)
• She lost her keys among the confusion. → amid the confusion (a mass noun)
• The village is among the forest. → in the forest (a single thing)
• Whilst amongst friends, he relaxed. in an American article → While among friends, he relaxed.
• amoungst, amonst → amongst

The other problem isn't in any one sentence: among on page 3 and amongst on page 40. Readers rarely notice the word, but a copy editor notices the switch.

It usually arrives when a manuscript changes audience, such as a British novel sold to an American publisher. Then, in Strokes, agent mode can copy the manuscript folder and change amongst to among and whilst to while in every chapter of the copy, showing each step, while the British edition stays as it was. Check the dialogue afterward, where a British character may need to keep amongst.

The same switch usually touches learnt and learned and judgement and judgment, so fix them in the same pass.

Quiz: among, between or amid?

Fill each gap, then check the answers below.

1. The border runs ____ France and Spain.
2. She felt at home ____ the other volunteers.
3. The talk ended ____ loud applause.
4. The inheritance was shared ____ seven cousins.
5. You have to choose ____ the train and the bus.
6. In a US magazine: “The survey was popular ____ teachers.”
7. The cat slept ____ the cushions on the sofa.
8. The company announced the layoffs ____ falling sales.

Where the -st comes from

Among goes back to Old English. According to Etymonline, by the mid-1200s speakers had added an adverb-making -s to produce amonges, the same old ending that gave afterwards its final letter. From the 16th century an extra -t appears, and the result is amongst.

That -t has no grammatical job. Dictionary.com calls it excrescent, “as in against,” and the same sound attached itself to amidst, whilst, betwixt and, from the 13th to the 17th century, alongst. Against kept its -t everywhere, alongst disappeared, and amongst and whilst survive as optional extras, mainly in British English. So amongst isn't a plural or a separate word. It is among with an older accent, and it follows exactly the same grammar.

Both forms in older texts

Older texts use both forms freely, often side by side, which is the clearest evidence that the difference was never one of meaning.