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of
1[ uhv, ov; unstressed uhvbefore consonants, uh ]
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.
of
2[ uhv ]
auxiliary verb
- have:
He should of asked me first.
OF
3abbreviation for
of-
4- variant of ob- (by assimilation) before f: offend.
OF
1abbreviation for
- Old French (language)
of
2/ ɒv; 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 clean air (object)
the breathing of a fine swimmer (subject)
- 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 man of some depth
a family of idiots
a rod of iron
- 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
- before the hour of
a quarter of nine
Usage Note
Usage
Spelling Note
Word History and Origins
Origin of of1
Origin of of2
Word History and Origins
Origin of of1
Example Sentences
The Dallas Cowboys sell out their state-of-the art football stadium.
We happily hoist our egg nog in the air, embrace each other, and raise our out-of-tune voices in song.
DISH delivers a one-of-a-kind entertainment experience to every room of your home, wirelessly.
The company recently partnered with Oakley to create a one-of-a-kind single malt Scotch flask.
A much larger number are immediately separated from their infants, who are typically placed in some form of out-of-home care.
You never know when you are going to stumble upon a jewel in the most out-of-the-way corner.
But Lessard's a overbearin' son-of-a-gun all round, and he's always breakin' out in a new place.
Mr. Slocum was not educated in a university, and his life has been in by-paths, and out-of-the-way places.
The Spanish men-of-war, which were always painted white, had their colour changed to dark grey like the American ships.
Later on the commander of a German man-of-war and his staff were received and fêted by the Captain-General.
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