Moving in a line with something or in the same direction as something. It can also mean continuing forward in time or progress.
From Old English *andlang*, meaning “entire, extended, lengthwise.” It comes from *and-* (a prefix meaning “against, along”) and *lang* (“long”). Gradually, the sense narrowed to mean movement or position in the same direction as something long.
“Along” is tied to the idea of length—like moving with the length of a road or a river. When we say “come along,” we’re really inviting someone to move in the same direction as us, both physically and in life. It’s a tiny word that quietly encodes the idea of shared journey.
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