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What is the difference between within and inside?

I've read a lot of letters with these words and people say that they mean the same.

Dictionaries often use the word inside in their definitions of within. Here's an entry from Oxford Dictionaries Online:

Within

preposition

Inside (something):

‘the spread of fire within the building’

1.1 Inside the range of (an area or boundary):

‘property located within the green belt’

1.2 Inside the range of (a specified action or perception):

‘we were within sight of the finish’

1.3 Inside the bounds set by (a concept, argument, etc.):

‘full cooperation within the terms of the treaty’

Are there any semantic or grammatical differences between these two words?

Best Answer

Both words refer to the interior of a three-dimensional concave surface; i.e, a container.
But they don't refer in the same ways; there's a lot of differences. @tchrist pointed some out.
Others include:

  • because inside is a noun (but within isn't), one can construct complex prepositions like
    glue the paper to the inside of the box

  • similarly, because it is a noun, inside can function as an adjective, as in the inside front cover, or in noun compounds like inside man or inside information.

  • inside, but not within, often uses of to mark its object:
    He got here inside (of) a minute but not *He got here within of a minute.

  • inside contrasts with outside, but within contrasts with without.
    These are quite dissimilar contrasts. For one thing, they don't do negation the same way.

    • They stood there within easy earshot, but without any comprehension at all.
    • Outside of a dog, a book is a man's best friend. Inside of a dog it's too dark to read.
      –   Groucho Marx
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