of

[ uhv, ov; unstressed uh v or, esp. before consonants, uh ]

/ ʌv, ɒv; unstressed əv or, esp. before consonants, ə /

preposition

(used to indicate distance or direction from, separation, deprivation, etc.): within a mile of the church; south of Omaha; to be robbed of one's money.

(used to indicate derivation, origin, or source): a man of good family; the plays of Shakespeare; a piece of cake.

(used to indicate cause, motive, occasion, or reason): to die of hunger.

(used to indicate material, component parts, substance, or contents): a dress of silk; an apartment of three rooms; a book of poems; a package of cheese.

(used to indicate apposition or identity): Is that idiot of a salesman calling again?

(used to indicate specific identity or a particular item within a category): the city of Chicago; thoughts of love.

(used to indicate possession, connection, or association): the king of France; the property of the church.

(used to indicate inclusion in a number, class, or whole): one of us.

(used to indicate the objective relation, the object of the action noted by the preceding noun or the application of a verb or adjective): the ringing of bells; He writes her of home; I'm tired of working.

(used to indicate reference or respect): There is talk of peace.

(used to indicate qualities or attributes): an ambassador of remarkable tact.

(used to indicate a specified time): They arrived of an evening.

Chiefly Northern U.S. before the hour of; until: twenty minutes of five.

on the part of: It was very mean of you to laugh at me.

in respect to: fleet of foot.

set aside for or devoted to: a minute of prayer.

Archaic. by: consumed of worms.

Origin of of

before 900; Middle English, Old English: of, off; cognate with German ab, Latin ab, Greek apó. See off, a-², o'

usage 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

oestrone, oestrous, oestrous cycle, oestrus, oeuvre, of, of a kind, of a piece, of a sort, of age, of all things

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)

or OF, O.F.

Old French.

Definition for of (4 of 4)

of-

variant of ob- (by assimilation) before f: offend.

British Dictionary definitions for of (1 of 2)

/ (ɒv, unstressed əv) /

preposition

used with a verbal noun or gerund to link it with a following noun that is either the subject or the object of the verb embedded in the gerund the breathing of a fine swimmer (subject); the breathing of clean air (object)

used to indicate possession, origin, or association the house of my sister; to die of hunger

used after words or phrases expressing quantities a pint of milk

constituted by, containing, or characterized by a family of idiots; a rod of iron; a man of some depth

used to indicate separation, as in time or space within a mile of the town; within ten minutes of the beginning of the concert

used to mark apposition the city of Naples; a speech on the subject of archaeology

about; concerning speak to me of love

used in passive constructions to indicate the agent he was beloved of all

informal used to indicate a day or part of a period of time when some activity habitually occurs I go to the pub of an evening

US before the hour of a quarter of nine

Word Origin for of

Old English (as prep and adv); related to Old Norse af, Old High German aba, Latin ab, Greek apo

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

of

preposition

Origin of of

usage note for of

Words nearby of

Definition for of (2 of 4)

auxiliary verb Pronunciation Spelling.

usage note for of

Definition for of (3 of 4)

or OF, O.F.

Definition for of (4 of 4)

British Dictionary definitions for of (1 of 2)

preposition

Word Origin for of

undefined of

British Dictionary definitions for of (2 of 2)

abbreviation for

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

of

preposition

Origin of of

usage note for of

Words nearby of

Definition for of (2 of 4)

auxiliary verb Pronunciation Spelling.

usage note for of

Definition for of (3 of 4)

or OF, O.F.

Definition for of (4 of 4)

Words related to of

British Dictionary definitions for of (1 of 2)

preposition

Word Origin for of

undefined of

British Dictionary definitions for of (2 of 2)

abbreviation for