by vs. beside

[sweetpumpkin]

Hello, everyone!

I have a quesiton on the differences between by and beside. For example,

Who's the handsome guy sitting beside Sally?
She is sitting in a rocking-chair by the window.

Both have the meaning of 'at the side of'. Is there any difference between them? I think they are really similar, but I guess somehow they are different from each other by their respective usages. For instance, with 'the window' or 'the door', I think 'by' could be more typically used like above. But I can't generalize them. Please help me out!

Thank you in advance,
sweetpumpkin

[Jamie (K)]

"By" means something like "near". It doesn't have to mean "at the side of". For example, to stand at the side of a window, you'd have to be inside the wall right next to the window. "By the window" means very near the window, but it doesn't mean at the side of it. A better explanation of "by" would be "very near and/or next to".

[Molly]

[Barb_D]

Beside sounds "closer" to the sea than "by." It could just come down to personal interpretation.
The little cottage you stay at may be "by" the sea but the chair you sit in on the beach while you read is "beside" the sea? Like I said, maybe personal interpretation.

[sweetpumpkin]

[Jamie (K)]

In those sentences, "by" and "beside" mean essentially the same thing.

[sweetpumpkin]

I see, thank you Jamie! I've been obsessed with the concept that 'by' has a meaning of 'near'.

By the way, what's the meaning of '(K)' in your nickname? I'm just curious. (You don't have to answer if you don't want to!)