beyond

Etymology

From Middle English biyonde, from Old English beġeondan, from be- + ġeond; related to yonder.

prep

1. Further away than.
2. On the far side of.
   No swimming beyond this point.
   England were graphically illustrating the huge gulf in class between the sides and it was no surprise when Lampard added the second just before the half hour. Steven Gerrard found his Liverpool team-mate Glen Johnson and Lampard arrived in the area with perfect timing to glide a header beyond Namasco. September 7, 2012, Phil McNulty, “Moldova 0-5 England”, in BBC Sport
3. Later than; after.
4. Greater than; so as to exceed or surpass.
   Your staff went beyond my expectations in refunding my parking ticket.
   He was a painter who was trying to get beyond painting, to escape from purely visual experience and lead his art in a more conceptual direction with a systematic approach. 2006, Janis Mink, Joan Miró, page 55
5. In addition to; supplementing.
   She had no reason for the conviction beyond the very inadequate one that she had seen him around London.
6. (figurative) Past, or out of reach of.
   You won't last beyond my first punch.
   The patient was beyond medical help.
   The 1300 class (Nos. 1301-16), one of which was damaged beyond repair in an accident, are Co-Cos, weigh 111 tons and have a top speed of 85 m.p.h. 1962 March, J. M. Tolson, “The Netherlands Railways today—I”, in Modern Railways, page 172
7. (figurative) Not within the comprehension of.
   He understood geometry well, but algebraic topology was beyond him.

adv

1. Farther along or away.
   Next year and beyond.
2. In addition; more.
3. (informal) extremely, more than
   But to then write about his allegedly fat girlfriend was beyond stupid, because by doing so he was in fact engaging a woman (me) in the “Am I fat?” discussion, which he supposedly realized he should never do. 2009, Jenny Lee, Women Are Crazy, Men Are Stupid, Simon & Schuster, page 7
   Marvel release stirring new set images of Black Panther and we are BEYOND excited [title] July 13 2017, Joseph Gamp, “Marvel release stirring new set images of Black Panther and we are BEYOND excited”, in Metro
   “We are BEYOND not ready for climate change,” Mark Levine, a City Council representative, declared on Twitter. 2021-09-01, Michael Levenson, Anne Barnard, quoting Mark Levine, “Scenes from New York City as Ida paralyzes region”, in The New York Times, →ISSN

noun

1. The unknown.
2. The hereafter.
3. Something that is far beyond.
   And that is perhaps why I am constantly searching for great beyonds — beyonds that will permit the application of different theoretical models (be they semiotically-inspired, gender-inspired, sexuality-inspired, and so on) beyond any disciplinary confines. 2006, Haun Saussy, American Comparative Literature Association, Comparative Literature in an Age of Globalization