side

/saɪd/

/saɪd/

Other forms: sides; sided; siding

A side is a physical position to the left or the right of an object or person. It’s also another kind of position—like if you take your brother’s side in an argument, you say he’s right. Even if he’s not.

There are physical sides, such as when Clark Kent parts his hair on the right side and Superman parts his on the left. There are also figurative sides, which you could also call positions or opinions. When your friends take your side in an argument, they agree with you, and when you have to debate both sides of an issue, it can help you understand another person's perspective.

Definitions of side

1. noun

   a place within a region identified relative to a center or reference location
   “they always sat on the right side of the church”

   “he never left my side”

   types:

   bedside

   space by the side of a bed (especially the bed of a sick or dying person)

   blind side

   the side on which your vision is limited or obstructed

   dockside

   the region adjacent to a boat dock

   east side

   the side that is on the east

   hand

   a position given by its location to the side of an object

   north side

   the side that is on the north

   shipside

   the part of a wharf that is next to a ship

   south side

   the side that is on the south

   west side

   the side that is on the west

   type of:

   part, region

   the extended spatial location of something
2. noun

   either the left or right half of a body
   “he had a pain in his side”

   type of:

   area, region

   a part of an animal that has a special function or is supplied by a given artery or nerve
3. noun

   a lengthwise dressed half of an animal's carcass used for food
   synonyms: side of meat

   types:

   side of beef

   dressed half of a beef carcass

   side of pork

   dressed half of a hog carcass

   pork belly

   side of fresh pork

   type of:

   cut, cut of meat

   a piece of meat that has been cut from an animal carcass
4. noun

   an elevated geological formation
   “the house was built on the side of a mountain”

   synonyms: incline, slope

   types:

   acclivity, ascent, climb, raise, rise, upgrade

   an upward slope or grade (as in a road)

   bank

   sloping land (especially the slope beside a body of water)

   bank, camber, cant

   a slope in the turn of a road or track; the outside is higher than the inside in order to reduce the effects of centrifugal force

   canyonside

   the steeply sloping side of a canyon

   coast

   a slope down which sleds may coast

   declension, declination, decline, declivity, descent, downslope, fall

   a downward slope or bend

   escarpment, scarp

   a long steep slope or cliff at the edge of a plateau or ridge; usually formed by erosion

   hillside

   the side or slope of a hill

   mountainside, versant

   the side or slope of a mountain

   piedmont

   a gentle slope leading from the base of a mountain to a region of flat land

   ski slope

   a snow-covered slope for skiing

   brae

   a slope or hillside

   downhill

   the downward slope of a hill

   riverbank, riverside

   the bank of a river

   steep

   a steep place (as on a hill)

   uphill

   the upward slope of a hill

   waterside

   land bordering a body of water

   type of:

   formation, geological formation

   (geology) the geological features of the earth
5. noun

   an extended outer surface of an object
   “he turned the box over to examine the bottom side”

   “they painted all four sides of the house”

   types:

   beam

   the broad side of a ship

   broadside

   the whole side of a vessel from stem to stern

   edge

   a sharp side formed by the intersection of two surfaces of an object

   front

   the side that is seen or that goes first

   larboard, port

   the left side of a ship or aircraft to someone who is aboard and facing the bow or nose

   nearside

   the side of a vehicle nearest the kerb

   obverse

   the side of a coin or medal bearing the principal stamp or design

   back, rear

   the side that goes last or is not normally seen

   reverse, verso

   the side of a coin or medal that does not bear the principal design

   sidewall

   the side of an automobile tire

   soffit

   the underside of a part of a building (such as an arch or overhang or beam etc.)

   starboard

   the right side of a ship or aircraft to someone who is aboard and facing the bow or nose

   upper surface

   the side that is uppermost

   bevel, cant, chamfer

   two surfaces meeting at an angle different from 90 degrees

   bezel

   a sloping edge on a cutting tool

   bow, fore, prow, stem

   front part of a vessel or aircraft

   brim, lip, rim

   the top edge of a vessel or other container

   ceiling

   the overhead upper surface of a covered space

   curb, curbing, kerb

   an edge between a sidewalk and a roadway consisting of a line of curbstones (usually forming part of a gutter)

   deckle, deckle edge

   rough edge left by a deckle on handmade paper or produced artificially on machine-made paper

   facade, frontage, frontal

   the face or front of a building

   face

   the side upon which the use of a thing depends (usually the most prominent surface of an object)

   featheredge

   a thin tapering edge

   frontispiece

   front illustration facing the title page of a book

   groin

   a curved edge formed by two intersecting vaults

   head

   (usually plural) the obverse side of a coin that usually bears the representation of a person's head

   cutting edge, knife edge

   the sharp cutting side of the blade of a knife

   leading edge

   forward edge of an airfoil

   milling

   corrugated edge of a coin

   nose

   a front that resembles a human nose (especially the front of an aircraft)

   nose

   the front or forward projection of a tool or weapon

   nose cone, ogive

   front consisting of the conical head of a missile or rocket that protects the payload from heat during its passage through the atmosphere

   razor edge

   an edge that is as sharp as the cutting side of a razor

   shirtfront

   the front of a shirt (usually the part not covered by a jacket)

   shopfront, storefront

   the front side of a store facing the street; usually contains display windows

   after part, poop, quarter, stern, tail

   the rear part of a ship

   empennage, tail, tail assembly

   the rear part of an aircraft

   tail

   (usually plural) the reverse side of a coin that does not bear the representation of a person's head

   trailing edge

   the rear edge of an airfoil

   type of:

   surface

   the outer boundary of an artifact or a material layer constituting or resembling such a boundary
6. noun

   a surface forming part of the outside of an object
   “he examined all sides of the crystal”

   synonyms: face

   types:

   beam-ends

   (nautical) at the ends of the transverse deck beams of a vessel

   bottom, underside, undersurface

   the lower side of anything

   forepart, front, front end

   the side that is forward or prominent

   lee, lee side, leeward

   the side of something that is sheltered from the wind

   windward

   the side of something that is toward the wind

   back end, backside, rear

   the side of an object that is opposite its front

   top, top side, upper side, upside

   the highest or uppermost side of anything

   base

   a flat bottom on which something is intended to sit

   bilge

   where the sides of the vessel curve in to form the bottom

   crest, crown

   the center of a cambered road

   heel

   the bottom of a shoe or boot; the back part of a shoe or boot that touches the ground and provides elevation

   sole

   the underside of footwear or a golf club

   poll

   the part of the head between the ears

   crown, pate, poll

   the top of the head

   nape, nucha, scruff

   the back side of the neck

   underbelly

   lower side

   forefront, head

   the part in the front or nearest the viewer

   rearward

   direction toward the rear

   desktop

   the top of a desk

   rooftop

   the top of a (usually flat) roof

   tiptop

   the extreme top or summit

   type of:

   surface

   the extended two-dimensional outer boundary of a three-dimensional object
7. noun

   a line segment forming part of the perimeter of a plane figure
   “the hypotenuse of a right triangle is always the longest side”

   type of:

   line

   a spatial location defined by a real or imaginary unidimensional extent
8. adjective

   located on a side
   “side fences”

   “the side porch”

   synonyms:

   broadside

   toward a full side

   lateral, sidelong

   situated at or extending to the side

   antonyms:

   top

   situated at the top or highest position

   bottom

   situated at the bottom or lowest position

   best

   (superlative of `good') having the most positive qualities

   high

   (literal meaning) being at or having a relatively great or specific elevation or upward extension (sometimes used in combinations like `knee-high')

   apical

   situated at an apex

   crowning

   forming or providing a crown or summit

   topmost, upmost, uppermost

   at or nearest to the top

   upper

   the topmost one of two

   bottommost, lowermost, nethermost

   farthest down

   inferior

   lower than a given reference point

   nether

   lower
9. noun

   an aspect of something (as contrasted with some other implied aspect)
   “he was on the heavy side”

   “he is on the purchasing side of the business”

   “it brought out his better side”

   types:

   downside

   a negative aspect of something that is generally positive

   hand

   one of two sides of an issue

   type of:

   aspect, facet

   a distinct feature or element in a problem
10. noun

    an opinion that is held in opposition to another in an argument or dispute
    “there are two sides to every question”

    synonyms: position

    type of:

    opinion, view

    a message expressing a belief about something; the expression of a belief that is held with confidence but not substantiated by positive knowledge or proof
11. noun

    one of two or more contesting groups
    “the Confederate side was prepared to attack”

    type of:

    social unit, unit

    an organization regarded as part of a larger social group
12. noun

    a family line of descent
    “he gets his brains from his father's side”

    type of:

    ancestry, blood, blood line, bloodline, descent, line, line of descent, lineage, origin, parentage, pedigree, stemma, stock

    the lineage of an individual
13. verb

    take sides for or against
    “"I"m siding against the current candidate”

    types:

    pull, root for

    take sides with; align oneself with; show strong sympathy for

    type of:

    align, array

    align oneself with a group or a way of thinking
14. noun

    (sports) the spin given to a ball by striking it on one side or releasing it with a sharp twist
    synonyms: English

    type of:

    spin

    a swift whirling motion (usually of a missile)