According to Oxford Learner's Dictionary,
in or into a position right beside somebody/something
following in order or importance after somebody/something
If:
A is next to B
it should mean that A is immediately beside B (as per the cited definition).
Question
But the question is:
Is A to the immediate right of B? Or to the immediate left?
Definition #2 seems to suggest that A comes after B — that is, to the right (assuming things are ordered from left to right, as is generally).
However, if A and B are next to each other, A is to the right of B, and B is to the left of A. Either ways are possible then.
Which one is a correct interpretation of 'next to'?
Context
I'm trying to the solve the "Einstein's Riddle" and two of the givens are:
- The Norwegian lives in the first house.
- The Norwegian lives next to the blue house.
In this case, knowing the correct position is most important. If the Norwegian(N)'s house is the first in a row of five houses, it can't possibly come after the blue(B) house. I'm arranging the houses horizontally from left to right. So, will house N be leftmost? If so, will house B be to its right? What should I assume?
Best Answer
Next to does mean "immediately beside somthing else." It may be to the left, right, up, or down of something or maybe none of them, for example, up and right of something.
In your case, since we are talking about some houses beside each other, next to a house means immediately to the right or left of another house. Because we are assuming that the houses form a line and not a circle, we have the first house and the last house in our arrangement. Therefore, here, next to means immediately to the left or right.