ALONG

9 definitions found across Law Mind sources

ALONGAuthored
The Law Mind • 915 words
Definition
A preposition of spatial relationship that, in legal usage, carries variable meaning depending on context. Courts and legal instruments do not treat "along" as a term of fixed meaning; its interpretation depends on the subject matter, the nature of the thing being described, and the surrounding language of the instrument or record. Principal legal meanings include: (1) By or beside — running parallel to or adjacent to a boundary, road, watercourse, or line. In this sense, "along the river" means at the side of, not crossing through it. (2) Over or through — traversing the course or extent of something. "Along a route" may mean throughout its length. (3) Adjoining or in proximity to — sometimes used synonymously with "adjoining," particularly in descriptions of land near railways or other linear features. (4) Extending to or reaching to — indicating the terminus or extent of a line or boundary. Notably, "along a line" does not require that an object be located precisely on the line itself; proximity satisfying the context is sufficient.
Common Language
Modern common usage (Wiktionary): "In company; together" or "Onward, forward, with progressive action." Historical common usage (Webster's 1913): "By the length; in a line with the length; lengthwise" and "in a line, or with a progressive motion; onward; forward." The common meaning is primarily directional or relational in a general, positional sense. The legal gap is narrow but consequential: in legal instruments — deeds, surveys, easements, railway statutes — "along" operates as a term of boundary description and spatial delimitation. Courts have had to resolve whether "along" means precisely on, beside, or through a given feature. A deed saying a boundary runs "along the creek" may be litigated over whether it means the centerline, the near bank, or the general corridor.
Common Confusion
"Along" is most frequently confused in legal reading with "adjacent to" and "adjoining." The terms are related but not synonymous. "Adjoining" typically implies direct contact or contiguity; "adjacent" allows for nearness without contact. "Along" in legal usage can encompass both, as Bouvier notes — it is "sometimes synonymous with adjoining" — but it may also mean traversal through or over a feature. Researchers reading old deeds, railway grants, or right-of-way instruments should resist collapsing "along" into "adjoining" without examining the specific subject matter.
Why It Matters in Research
"Along" is a high-frequency term in boundary descriptions, deed language, railway and utility easement grants, and riparian rights disputes, and its meaning shifted with context even within a single era. Several research traps apply. First, the term is not defined consistently across jurisdictions or instrument types. A survey using "along the highway" and a deed using "along the railway" may have been interpreted under different local rules, even in the same court system. Second, historical legal dictionary sources treat "along" as context-dependent rather than technically defined — meaning researchers cannot apply a single gloss mechanically. The controlling question is always: along what, in what kind of instrument, and for what legal purpose? Third, in railway and utility law, "along the route" carries a specialized meaning tied to franchise and easement scope. Whether structures, fixtures, or uses fell "along" a granted route was frequently litigated in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries — the period most densely represented in the Law Mind corpus for this usage. Fourth, in riparian and water law contexts, "along" a watercourse may determine whether a boundary tracks the centerline (thalweg) or the bank, with significant implications for ownership of the bed. Researchers working with land records, franchise instruments, or water rights documents should treat "along" as a signal to examine the entire instrument and any applicable local survey or recording practice before settling on an interpretation.
Historical Dictionary Support
Black's Law Dictionary (both editions), Bouvier, and Anderson's are in agreement on the core point: "along" means "by," "on," or "over," according to subject matter and context. This consistent formulation across sources reflects judicial practice rather than technical definition — courts were repeatedly asked to interpret the word and declined to assign it a fixed meaning. Bouvier extends the definition most usefully, adding "in proximity to, as along the route of a railway" and the gloss "up to, extending to, reaching to," as well as flagging that "along a line" does not require an object to be precisely on the line. This additional texture from Bouvier is not present in the Black's entries and is valuable for researchers working with railway franchise or easement language specifically. Anderson's entry for "along" as printed in the available source material appears to be a misfiled entry (the text provided concerns military allowances and forfeiture), and should not be relied upon for this term. The historical sources do not address "along" in the context of water boundaries or thalweg doctrine — a gap researchers should note, as riparian interpretation of the term was separately developed in case law.
Jurisdictional Note
Interpretation of "along" in deed and boundary descriptions has been handled at the state level, with no uniform federal rule. States with significant railway grant or public land survey histories may have local precedent fixing the term's meaning in those specific contexts. Researchers should check applicable state survey practice and any local rules governing deed interpretation before relying on general dictionary definitions.
Related Terms
Adjacent; Adjoining; Abutting; Boundary; Easement; Right-of-Way; Riparian Rights; Thalweg; Description (in deeds); Course and Distance
ALONGmain
Black's Law Dictionary • 1891
This term means "by," "on," or "over," according to the subject-matter and the context. 34 Conn. 425; 1 Barn. & Adol. 448; 67 Mo. 58.
ALONGmain
Bouvier's Law Dictionary • 1928
It means "by," "on," or "over," according to the subject-matter and context. 34 Conn. 425; 67 Mo. 58; 1 B. & Adol. 448. In proximity to, as along the route of a railway. 91 U. S. 472. Through, in the direction of. Stand. Dict. Sometimes synonymous with adjoining. 2 A. & E. Ency., 2nd ed., 176; 67 Mo. 58. Up to, extending to, reaching to. "Along a line" does not signify that an object must be on the line, but rather the reverse; along, in this sense, is used as the equivalent of up to, extending to, reaching to. Id.; 71 Ga. 619.
ALONGmain
Anderson's Dictionary of Law • 1890
Allowance to a child or other dependent: ordinarily, only another name for a gift or gratuity.¹ The honorable discharge of a soldier from service does not restore him allowances forfeited by desertion (included in which is a bounty), that is, everything which could be recovered from the government in consideration of enlistment and services. The forfeiture must first be removed.2 Over against in length; lengthwise of. Compare BY, 1; PARALLEL. "By the length of, as distinguished from across; lengthwise of;" as, a railway along a highway.5 A sidewalk "along the line" of land does not import that the sidewalk must at all points touch or be parallel to such line. "Along a line" means up to, extending to, reaching to, that line.7 In the expression "on, over, and along" an alley, is synonymous with on or over, not by the side of. An insurable interest on property of a railroad "along its route" means property in proximity to the rails upon which the engines run: which may be outside the lines of the roadway or lawfully within those lines.º "Along the bank" of the Chattahoochee is definite enough to exclude the idea that any part of the river or its bed was not to be within the State of Georgia by the cession of her unsettled territory to the United States in 1802. The call excludes the idea that a line was to be traced at the edge of the water as that may be at one time or another; - it is for "the bank," the fast land which confines the water of the river in its channel or bed in its whole width. Wherever the bed may be it belongs to Georgia, and not to Alabama. The line is to be determined, in each trial, by the jury.10 1 Barney v. City of Keokuk, 94 U. S. 337 (1876), Bradley, J. See also New Orleans v. United States, 10 Pet. 717 (1836); 16 F. R. 816. 2 Saulet v. Shepherd, 4 Wall. 508 (1866). People ex rel. Swiss Society v. Commissioners of Taxes, 36 Hun, 311 (1885): Webster. 4 Salem Capital Flour Mills Co. v. Stayton WaterDitch & Canal Co., 33 F. R. 154 (1887). 5 County of Cook v. Great Western R. Co., 119 III. 225 2 United States v. Landers, 92 U. S. 79, 80 (1875), (1886): Webster. Field, J.; 13 Op. Att. Gen. 198. 3 Lovingston v. St. Clair County, 64 Ill. 58, 60 (1872), cases, Thornton, J. County of St. Clair v. Lovingston, 23 Wall. 68 (1874), Swayne, J. See 18 La. An. 122; 2 Bl. Com. 262; 3 Kent, 428; 2 Washb. R. P. 58, 452. • Commonwealth v. Franklin, 183 Mass. 570 (1882). 7 Benton v. Horsley, 71 Ga. 626 (1883). *Heath v. Des Moines, &c. R. Co., 61 Iowa, 14 (1883). Grand Trunk R. Co. v. Richardson, 91 U. S. 472 (1875). See also 13 Metc. 99; 42 Me. 585-86; 27 Alb. L. J. 385. 10 Howard v. Ingersoll, 13 How. 416-17 (1851).
ALONGadv.
Websters Unabridged Dictionary (1913) • 1913
By the length; in a line with the length; lengthwise. Some laid along . . . on spokes of wheels are hung. Dryden. In a line, or with a progressive motion; onward; forward. We will go along by the king's highway. Numb. xxi. 22. He struck with his o'ertaking wings, And chased us south along. Coleridge. In company; together. He to England shall along with you. Shak. All along, all trough the course of; during the whole time; throughout. "I have all along declared this to be a neutral paper." Addison. -- To get along, to get on; to make progress, as in business. "She 'll get along in heaven better than you or I." Mrs. Stowe.
ALONGprep.
Websters Unabridged Dictionary (1913) • 1913
By the length of, as distinguished from across. "Along the lowly lands." Dryden. The kine . . . went along the highway. 1 Sam. vi. 12.
ALONGn.
Websters Unabridged Dictionary (1913) • 1913
(Now heard only in the prep. phrase along of.) Along of, Along on, often shortened to Long of, prep. phr., owing to; on account of. [Obs. or Low. Eng.] "On me is not along thin evil fare." Chaucer. "And all this is long of you." Shak. "This increase of price is all along of the foreigners." London Punch.
alongadv
Wiktionary (English) • 2026
Wiktionary contributorsCC BY-SA 4.0 • via Kaikki
Extracted and formatted for display by Law Mind. Source link opens the current Wiktionary page and its contributor history; it is not a frozen copy of this extract.
In company; together. | Onward, forward, with progressive action.
alongprep
Wiktionary (English) • 2026
Wiktionary contributorsCC BY-SA 4.0 • via Kaikki
Extracted and formatted for display by Law Mind. Source link opens the current Wiktionary page and its contributor history; it is not a frozen copy of this extract.
By the length of; in a line with the length of; lengthwise next to. | In a line with, with a progressive motion on; onward on; forward on.

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