of

of

1. The preposition of is one of the key words in structuring phrases and sentences in English, and it is sometimes possible to make a slip in usage that can give the wrong meaning. Fowler (1926) devoted a long article to this topic and gave citations from newspapers which illustrated various problems associated with its use. These usually occur in extended sentences and consist of either adding an of where it is not wanted (or where another preposition is called for) or leaving out an of where it is needed to clarify the sense. This entry deals with these topics in more summary form, with examples taken from a wide range of sources.

2. The most usual context in which of is wrongly inserted is at a point in a long sentence in which it is meant to refer back to an earlier part of the sentence but is in fact the wrong choice, influenced by the occurrence of another of close by which has nothing to do with it: He will be in the best possible position for getting the most out of the land and of using it to the best possible advantage (the preposition wanted is for not of) / It could be done without unduly raising the price of coal, or of jeopardizing new trade (the second of is redundant). In other cases, a repeated of is not incorrect but is unnecessary: A series of problem contracts and of bad debts does not explain the situation / On the one hand there are the conventional rules of good manners and of correct behaviour.

3. In other cases, however, of must be repeated to avoid misunderstanding: He has mapped the development of the animal's nervous system and of its behaviour (of repeated to establish a link with development). It should also be repeated in constructions with both when the position of both requires a balanced sequence: There are teachers with low standards who think a mere pass at whatever grade is a feather in the cap both of themselves and of their pupils (alternatively, one could put…a feather in the cap of both themselves and their pupils, but in this case the result would be awkward).

4. The other principal error lies in omitting an of where this is called for to clarify the meaning: The banning of meetings and the printing and distribution of leaflets stopped the agitation (of should be put in before the printing to show that the part after the first and is still governed by the word banning).

5. The informal type of an evening, of a Sunday afternoon, etc.

• (All the intellect of the place assembled of an evening —Carlyle, 1831)

is beginning to sound literary or archaic, except in dialect use. In AmE, this type is often expressed in the form evenings, Sunday afternoons, etc., without any preposition (She plays cards Thursdays).