of course

of course

has a useful role as a term of insistence meaning ‘as was to be expected’, in which the hearer's or reader's prior knowledge or agreement can reasonably be assumed. Fowler (1926) rightly urged caution in the use of the phrase ‘as the herald of an out-of-the-way fact that one has just unearthed’, e.g. Milton of course had the idea from Tacitus. Some modern examples are:

• Of course, there are a number of other phenomena, such as lightning and reflections of sunlight off tumbling satellites and orbiting debris, that can also give flashes in the sky —Stephen Hawking, 1988

• We were approached by Tom Lloyd, a young solicitor from Carmarthen with a passion for historic buildings —particularly, of course, those of Wales —M. Binney et al., 1991

• He is a clear writer but not inspired enough to get away with generalisations like ‘of course sublimation of sexual urges played a huge part in Ford's drive’ —Scotland on Sunday, 2003.