of
1
[ uhv, ov; unstressed uh v or, esp. before consonants, uh ]
/ ʌv, ɒv; unstressed əv or, esp. before consonants, ə /
preposition
Origin of of
1usage note for of
Of is sometimes added to phrases beginning with the adverb
how or
too followed by a descriptive adjective:
How long of a drive will it be? It's too hot of a day for tennis. This construction is probably modeled on that in which
how or
too is followed by
much, an unquestionably standard use in all varieties of speech and writing:
How much of a problem will that cause the government? There was too much of an uproar for the speaker to be heard. The use of
of with descriptive adjectives after
how or
too is largely restricted to informal speech. It occurs occasionally in informal writing and written representations of speech. See also
couple,
off.
Words nearby of
Definition for of (2 of 4)
of
2
[ uh v ]
/ əv /
auxiliary verb Pronunciation Spelling.
have: He should of asked me first.
Compare
a4.
usage note for of
Because the preposition
of, when unstressed (
a piece of cake ), and the unstressed or contracted auxiliary verb
have (
could have gone, could've gone ) are both pronounced
[uh v] /əv/ or
[uh] /ə/ in connected speech, inexperienced writers commonly confuse the two words, spelling
have as
of (
I would of handed in my book report, but the dog ate it ). Professional writers have been able to exploit this spelling deliberately, especially in fiction, to help represent the speech of the uneducated:
If he could of went home, he would of.
Definition for of (3 of 4)
OF
or OF, O.F.
Old French.
Definition for of (4 of 4)
British Dictionary definitions for of (1 of 2)
of
/ (ɒv, unstressed əv) /
preposition
Word Origin for of
Old English (as prep and adv); related to Old Norse
af, Old High German
aba, Latin
ab, Greek
apo
undefined of
See
off
British Dictionary definitions for of (2 of 2)
OF
abbreviation for
Old French (language)