THE 
 CORRECT PIIEPOSITION 
 
 HOW TO USE IT 
 
 JOSEPHINE IXJRCK BAKER 
 
 ■»»#r^i«W6, '.KMfikjtaSltMUSMH 
 

 
 1 
 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 University of California. 
 
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 i 
 
 
 
 
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 A 
 
Digitized by the Internet Archive 
 
 in 2007 with funding from 
 
 IVIicrosoft Corporation 
 
 http://www.archive.org/details/correctprepositiOObakerich 
 
THE CORRECT PREPOSITION 
 
 HOW TO USE IT 
 
 A COMPLETE 
 ALPHABETIC LIST 
 
 BY 
 
 JOSEPHINE TURCK BAKER 
 
 AUTHOR OF 
 
 Correct English: A Complete Grammar; The Correct Word: 
 How to Use It; Correct English in the School; Ten Thou- 
 sand Words: How to Pronounce Them; How Can I 
 Increase My Vocabulary: Art of Conversation; Cor- 
 rect English Drill Book, etc.; and Editor of the 
 Magazine Correct English: How to Use It 
 
 •VI 
 
 PUBLISHED BY 
 
 COBEECT ENGLISH PUBLISHING COMPANY 
 CHICAGO, ILLINOIS 
 
81(^1 
 
 COPTBIGHT 1911 
 
 BZ 
 
 JOBSPHINB TUECK BAKEE 
 
 
THE CORRECT PREPOSITION 
 
 HOW TO USE IT 
 
 Eule. — Use the preposition that will best 
 express the meaning. 
 
 Note. — Frequently the preposition that is 
 embodied in the preceding word furnishes the 
 key to the preposition that is required; thus: 
 the word ** controversy'' requires the preposi- 
 tion ^^with," con meaning with; as, **He was 
 engaged in a controversy mth his friend." 
 Abatement Of. 
 
 Dimm^ation ; as : 
 
 Would the Council of Eegency consent to 
 an abatement of three thousand pounds! 
 
 — Macaulay. 
 Abdication Of. 
 
 The act of giving up; as: 
 
 Each mind (that) we approach seems to 
 require an abdication of all our present and 
 past possessions. — Emerson, 
 Aberration From. 
 
 The act of wandering away ; as : 
 
 So then we draw near to God, when, repent- 
 ing us of our former aberrations from him, we 
 renew our covenant with him ! — HalL 
 
 Abhorrence Of. 
 
 Strong hatred; as: 
 
 One man thinks justice consists in paying 
 5 
 
 /^ ,N* w kjkJ r^ 
 
6 THE CORltECT' AEPOSiriON: 
 
 i« " 
 
 debts, and has no measure in Kis* Mhorrence of 
 another who is very remiss in this duty, 
 
 — Emerson, 
 Abhorrent To. 
 
 Struck with abhorrence ; as : 
 Christianity turns from these scenes of strife, 
 as abhorrent to her highest injunctions. 
 
 — Sumner, 
 Abide In or By. 
 
 To have one's abode; as: 
 In the noiseless air and light that flowed 
 Bound your fair brows, eternal peace abode, 
 
 — Bryant, 
 
 ' * I will abide by your decision. ' ' 
 
 Abound In or With. 
 In. — To be in great plenty ; as : 
 Nature abounds in wits of every kind, 
 And for each author can a talent find. 
 
 — Dryden, * 
 
 With, — To be plentifully supplied with; as: 
 ^'The river abounds ivith fish." 
 
 Absolve From. 
 
 To set free or release ; as : 
 
 No amount of erudition or technical skill or 
 critical power can absolve the mind from the 
 necessity of creating, if it would grow. 
 
 —Clifford. 
 Abstract Prom. 
 
 To draw or take away; as: 
 '*His attention was abstracted from the ob- 
 ject." 
 
 Accede To. 
 
 To yield to; as: 
 
 *VWe acceded to her terms." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 7 
 
 ^ Accommodate To or With. 
 
 To, — To bring into harmony or accord; as: 
 
 'Twas his misfortune to light upon an 
 hypothesis that could not be accommodated to 
 the nature of things and human affairs. — Locke. 
 
 With, — To provide with conveniences, or es- 
 sentials; as: 
 
 ^^He accommodated his friend with money." 
 Accompanied By or With. 
 
 By, — To attend or join in movement or 
 action; as: 
 
 **He was accompanied by his friend" (or by 
 his dog). 
 
 With, — To put in company with ; as : 
 
 **He accompanied his remark with a blow." 
 
 By or with, — To be or exist in company 
 with; as: 
 
 **The thunder was accompanied by or mth 
 lightning." 
 
 Note. — The present tendency is to restrict 
 by and with to the following uses: Accom- 
 panied by a person or agent; with a thing, 
 consequence, etc. ; accompanied by friends ; de- 
 feat accompanied with disgrace^. 
 Accord With (intransitive). 
 
 To agree; as: 
 
 **To this the courteous Prince, 
 Accorded with his wonted courtesy." 
 
 Accord To (transitive). 
 
 Her hands accorded the lute's music to the 
 voice. — Sir Philip Sidney, 
 
 Accordance With. 
 
 Agreement; as: 
 
 ^^ Their voices are in wonderful accordance 
 with the tranquil solitude of a summer after- 
 
8 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION; 
 
 According To. 
 In conformity to one's opinion; as: 
 According to him, every person was to be 
 
 bought. — Macaulay. 
 Note. — According is frequently followed by 
 
 the conjunction as; thus: 
 *^He does according as he thinks best.'' 
 / Accountable To (a person) For (a thing). 
 
 **He was accountable to his employer for the 
 
 goods that he sold." 
 
 Accuse Of. 
 
 To make an imputation against; as: 
 (Sometimes with for before the object of 
 
 censure.) 
 **They accused him of extreme carelessness." 
 The Eomanists accuse the Protestants for 
 
 their indifference. — Southey. 
 
 Acquaint With. 
 
 To make familiar with ; as : 
 
 Persons themselves acquaint us with the im- 
 personal. — Emerson. 
 Acquiesce In. 
 
 To agree in; as: 
 
 **We acquiesced in what she said." 
 
 Note. — In modern usage, in is required, but 
 formerly to, with and from were employed. 
 
 Adapted To, For, From. 
 To. — To make suitable ; as : 
 A good poet will adapt the very sounds, as 
 well as words to the things he treats of. — Pope, 
 For, — To fit by alteration; as: 
 ^^He adapted the story /or the stage." 
 From, — To make by altering or fitting some- 
 thing else; as: 
 
 **He adapted the story for the stage, from 
 the French." 
 
1/ 
 
 HOW TO USE IT 9 
 
 Add To. 
 
 To annex ; as : 
 
 They added ridge to valley, brook to pond, 
 And sighed for all that bounded their do- 
 main. — Emerson. 
 
 Address To. 
 
 To speak or write to ; as : , 
 
 **He addressed himself to the chairman.'' 
 
 Adequate To. 
 
 Fully sufficient; as: 
 
 The Aztec picture-writing seems to have 
 been adequate to the demands of the nation, in 
 their imperfect state of civilization. — Prescott, 
 
 Adhere To. 
 
 To stick fast ; as : 
 
 The principle of free government adheres to 
 American soil. — Webster. 
 
 Adjourn At, On, Over, For, From, In, To. 
 
 At, on, over, for. — To suspend for a time ; as : 
 ' ' They adjourned for half an hour at noon, on 
 
 Monday." 
 
 ^^They adjourned over the holidays.'' 
 
 From. — To put off from day to day ; as : 
 
 ^^They adjourned from day to day." 
 
 In. — To terminate; as: 
 
 *^The meeting adjourned in confusion." 
 
 To. — To transfer to another place, or to 
 
 change the hour ; as : 
 
 ^^The meeting adjourned to New York." 
 *'The meeting was adjourned to Wednesday" 
 
 (or to three o'clock). 
 
 Adjudge To. 
 
 To award or bestow by formal decision ; as ; 
 "The prize was adjudged to the victor." 
 
10 THE COEBECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Adjust To. 
 
 To cause to fit, to adapt or settle ; as : 
 
 *^They adjusted the window to tie frame." 
 Admission To, Into. 
 
 To. — To have access ; as : 
 
 He was denied admission to the room. 
 
 Into. — To have entrance ; as : 
 
 **The admission of light into the room was 
 through a small window." 
 
 Admit To, Into, WitMn, Of. 
 To. — To afford access ; as : 
 **This ticket will admit you to the theater." 
 Into. — To afford entrance ; as : 
 **He was admitted into the house." 
 Within. — To afford entrance into an en- 
 closure; as: 
 
 **He was admitted within the garrison." 
 Of. — To afford discussion; as: 
 **The argument admits of no discussion." 
 Admonisb Of. 
 To reprove with mildness ; as : 
 '*He was admonished of his duty." 
 Advantage Of, Over, In, With. 
 
 Of J Over. — To he in more favorable position 
 or to have better privileges; to have superior 
 knowledge; as: 
 
 ** You have the advantage of me, for I do not 
 remember you." 
 
 *^The special advantage of manhood over 
 youth lies in the sense of reality and limi- 
 tation. ' ' 
 
 In. — Vantage in argument ; as : 
 
 **He had the advantage in the discussion." 
 
 With. — Superiority in position or condition; 
 as: 
 
 **The advantage was ivith the enemy." 
 
HOW TO USB IT 11 
 
 Advice To, Of, From. 
 To. — The giving of counsel ; as: 
 **His advice to the people was received with 
 
 applause. ' ' 
 Of, — Counsel given by another ; as : 
 **He took the advice of his friend. '^ 
 From, — Information given by another ; as : 
 ** Advices from our agent inform us that the 
 
 goods have been received.'' 
 
 Advise Of, With. 
 
 Of, — To give information ; as : 
 
 ^ ' He was advised of his danger. ' ' 
 
 With, — To take counsel with ; as : 
 
 **I will advise with my friends in order to see 
 
 what can be done." 
 
 i/ Advocate Of, For. 
 
 Of, — To vindicate or espouse a cause ; as : 
 
 **He is an advocate of the oppressed." 
 
 For, — To vindicate or espouse a cause for a 
 person; as: 
 
 '*He is an advocate for the defendant." 
 Aflanity Of, Between, For, 
 
 Of. — Close agreement or relation ; likeness in 
 nature, character, or taste ; as : 
 
 ^^The affinity of the Aryan languages is re- 
 vealed by a study of Philology." 
 
 Between, — Inherent likeness or agreement 
 between persons or things ; as : 
 
 The perception of real affinities between 
 events . . . enables the poet thus to make 
 free with the most imposing forms and phenona- 
 ena of the world, and to assert the predomi- 
 nance of the soul. — Emerson, 
 
 For. — A natural liking as of one person for 
 another; as: 
 
12 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 ^ ^ The affinity that one person has for another 
 can not always be accounted for." 
 
 \/ Agree To, With, Upon. 
 
 To.— To yield assent ; as : 
 
 *^He agreed to the proposition." 
 
 With. — To be consistent ; to suit ; as : 
 
 **The food does not agree ivith him." 
 
 Upon. — To arrive at an understanding or 
 
 settlement; as: 
 
 y^ They agreed upon New York as the place of 
 
 meeting. ' ' 
 
 Agreeable In, To. 
 
 In. — Affable in manner ; as : 
 
 '*He is agreeable in his manner." 
 
 To. — ^Affable towards ; as : 
 
 **He is agreeable in his manner to everyone 
 that he meets." 
 
 Note. — In connection with the expression 
 * ^ agreeable to, ' ^ note that ^ ^ agreeably with ' ' is 
 required in such constructions as ^'Agreeably 
 with your request, we are sending you, ' ' etc. 
 
 Alien To (rarely From), In, Among. 
 To. — Strange, foreign, not belonging to ; as : 
 **It is difficult to trace the origin of senti- 
 ments so alien to our thoughts." 
 In. — A stranger in a plaec or situation; as: 
 **He is an alien in our land." 
 'Among. — A stranger among people ; as : 
 He is an alien among us. 
 
 Allied To, With. 
 
 To. — Eelated to ; as : 
 
 Ah! Madam; true wit is more nearly allied 
 to good nature than your ladyship is aware 
 of.' — Sheridan. 
 
 With. — Connected with ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 13 
 
 '^ Common interests allied Holland with 
 Protestant German States/' 
 Alter From, To, Into. 
 
 From, Into. — To change from one design or 
 thing to another ; as : 
 
 ^^He altered the building from a barn into a 
 house. ' ' 
 
 To. — To change ; as : 
 
 ^^He altered the original to the new design." 
 Ambitious Of (formerly For and After). 
 
 Desirous of greater things ; as : 
 
 **He is ambitious of applause." 
 
 Note. — ' * Ambitious ' ' is often followed by the 
 infinitive; as: 
 
 *^I am ambitious to succeed.*' 
 Amuse At, With. 
 
 At. — To cause merriment ; as : 
 
 I was amused at his antics. 
 
 With. — The instrument by which merriment 
 is caused ; as : 
 
 ^^I amused the children ivith stories." 
 
 Note. — Usage now favors **at" or '*with," 
 as the case may require, instead of *^by" or 
 '4n" as formerly. 
 Analogous To (less frequently With). 
 Bearing resemblance. 
 
 ^^ There is something in the exercise of the 
 mind analogous to that of the body." 
 Analogy Between, Of, To, With. 
 
 Between, Of, To, With. — Eesemblance or 
 agreement; as: 
 
 ^^ There is some analogy between nature and 
 revelation." 
 
 The analogy of sound to light exists. 
 
 '^A family has some analogy to (or with) a 
 state." 
 
14 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 AHSwer To. 
 
 To, — To be correlative; to have similarity; 
 as: 
 
 **The prisoner answered to the description.'' 
 
 For. — To be responsible for the good conduct 
 or safe-keeping of some person or thing; as: 
 
 *^I will answer for his conduct.'' 
 
 Antagonism To, Between. 
 
 To. — Attitude of opposition towards a person 
 or thing; as: 
 
 ' * His antagonism to the truth was manifest in 
 every word that he uttered. ' ' 
 
 Between. — Reciprocal opposition. 
 
 *^The antagonism between the two was evi- 
 denced in every word and action." 
 
 Antagonistic To. 
 
 *'He was antagonistic to the superstitions of 
 his time." 
 
 Antipathy To, Between. 
 
 **He had an antipathy to reptiles." 
 
 **The antipathy between the two was plainly 
 
 obvious. ' ' 
 
 Angry With, At. 
 
 With. — Eesentment felt for a person ; as : 
 
 * * I am angry with him. ' ' 
 
 At. — Resentment felt because of the conduct 
 of another ; because of conditions, etc. ; as : 
 
 **I am angry at the way that he treats you." 
 
 Annex To. 
 
 ^*The suburb was annexed to the city." 
 
 Anxious For, About. 
 
 For. — Solicitous for something to happen or 
 to be done ; as : 
 
 **I am anxious for success." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 15 
 
 About. — Solicitous for some person, creature 
 or situation; as: 
 
 *'I am anxious about him'' {his health; his 
 tvelfare, and the like). 
 Apologize For, To. 
 
 For, — To express regret for a fault ; as : 
 
 ''I apologize for my conduct.'' 
 
 To, — To express regret to another for one's 
 conduct; as: 
 
 ^^I apologize to him for my conduct." 
 
 Appoint To, Over. 
 
 To, — To decree or ordain the doing of some- 
 thing; as: 
 
 ^ ^ They appointed him to the office. ' ' 
 Over, — To appoint some one to an office over 
 others; as: 
 
 ^^They appointed him over the people." 
 Apprehensive Of, For. 
 
 Of, — Apprehending evil, harm, danger; as: 
 **I am apprehensive of danger." 
 For, — Solicitude for another's safety, as: 
 **I am apprehensive for his safety." 
 Approve of, — To favor a person, or thing, or 
 abstraction; as: 
 
 ^'I approve of his conduct." 
 
 Argue With, About, For or Against; Into or Out Of; Prom, 
 To. 
 
 With, — Debate with a person ; as : 
 
 **I argued the case with him for an hour." 
 
 About, — Urge reasons ; as : 
 
 **I argued about the subject before deciding 
 upon the course of action." 
 
 For, against, — To debate in favor of; to de- 
 bate against; as: 
 
 *'He argued for the plaintiff. He argued 
 against the defendant." 
 
16 THE COKRECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Into, out of. — To talk a person into a line of 
 reasoning ; to talk him out of it ; as : 
 
 ^*I argued him into thinking that the case 
 •hould be tried." 
 
 *^I argued him out of thinking that the case 
 should be tried.'' 
 
 From, To. — To urge reasons from one point 
 of view to another ; as : 
 
 *^We argued from cause to effect." 
 
 Array In, Before, Against. 
 
 In. — To place or draw up in order ; as : 
 * * The army was arrayed in the open field. ' ' 
 Against. — To place in opposition to ; as : 
 **The army was arrayed against the enemy." 
 Before. — To place in front of ; as : 
 *'The army was arrayed before the com- 
 mander. ' ' 
 
 Note. — *^In" and **with" are often used in- 
 terchangeably in such constructions as ^^He was 
 arrayed in (or with) royal apparel." 
 
 Ask About, After, For, Of. 
 
 About, after. — To make inquiry regarding 
 some person or thing ; as : 
 
 ^*He asked about my affairs." *'He ashed 
 after you." 
 
 For. — To demand, expect or claim ; as : 
 
 **What price do you ash for it V^ 
 
 Of. — To request, petition; as: 
 
 **I ashed a favor of him." 
 
 Aspire To, After. 
 
 To. — To have an earnest wish to attain; as: 
 **He aspired to fame." 
 
 After. — To have an earnest wish to attain 
 some abstraction; as: 
 
 *^He aspired after excellence." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 17^ 
 
 Assent To. 
 To agree ; as : 
 '*He assented to the proposition." 
 
 Assimilate To, With. 
 
 To, — To cause to become harmonious or ac- 
 cordant with each other ; as : 
 
 He assimilates his life to the standard of ideal 
 rectitude. — Hawthorne. 
 
 With. — To become similar; as: 
 
 ^^A people whose differences of religion, lan- 
 guage, and general habits made them incapable 
 of assimilating with their Christian neighbors." 
 
 j/ Astonished At, By. 
 
 At. — To be affected at something we view 
 from without ; as : 
 
 **I am astonished at his conduct." 
 
 By. — To be affected by something that is 
 thought of as an agent ; as : 
 
 **They were astonished hy the enemy." 
 
 Attend At, Oia or Upon, To, With. 
 
 At. — To be present ; as : 
 
 *^He attended upon the committee." 
 
 Note. — **At" is more frequently omitted, as 
 **He attends the same church that I do." This 
 use of *^ attend" is transitive. 
 
 On or upon. — (a) To be present, in pursu- 
 ance of duty, business, or pleasure ; especially, 
 act as an attendant; as: 
 
 He attended upon the committee. 
 
 (b) To be consequent; wait; as: 
 
 It is good that a certain portion of disgrace 
 should constantly attend on certain bad actions. 
 
 — Macaulay. 
 
 To. — To give attention; as: 
 
 '^ Attend to what I am saying." 
 
18 THE COBRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 With, — To accompany or follow in immediate 
 sequence; as: 
 
 ^^The cold was attended with fever/' 
 Avail One's Self Of. 
 
 To take advantage of ; as : 
 
 **Slie availed herself of the reduced rates of 
 tuition. ' ' 
 Avenge One's Self On or Upon. 
 
 To vindicate by inflicting pain ; as : 
 
 **He avenged his anger on (or upon) his 
 servant. ' ' 
 y Averse To. 
 
 In opposition to ; as : 
 
 ^^I am averse to your going." 
 Banish From, To. 
 
 From, — To expel from a customary or de- 
 sired place; as: 
 
 These evils thou repeat 'st upon thyself 
 
 Have banished me from Scotland. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 To. — To expel to or relegate to a place; as: 
 
 * * Ovid was banished to Tomi. ' ' 
 Bargain With, For. 
 
 With.— To make an agreement with sl person ; 
 as: 
 
 **He bargained with his host for his supper.'' 
 
 For. — To make an agreement for an object. 
 
 Note. — See use of for in preceding sentence ; 
 also the following: 
 
 We bargain for the graves we lie in. 
 
 — Lowell. 
 Base On or Upon. 
 
 On or upon. — To place upon a foundation, or 
 basis; as: 
 
 *'A11 sound paper must be based on cur- 
 rency or bullion." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 19 
 
 It is on this understanding, and not on the 
 sentiment of a nation that all safe legislation 
 must be based. — Loivell. 
 
 Note. — Upon seems to be preferable to on 
 when used with the verb base, for the reason 
 that, while on and upon are in many of their 
 uses identical in force, upon, meaning up and 
 on^ really expresses motion to the object from 
 above or from the side; on is used to express the 
 same idea, but as it has many variant uses it 
 would seem better to use upon whenever motion 
 is expressed from above or from the side. 
 
 Battle With, For, Against. 
 
 With. — To struggle with an object or an 
 idea; as: 
 
 '*He battled with his adversary;*' *^He bat- 
 tled with ignorance.'' 
 
 For. — To struggle for the attainment of 
 something; as: 
 
 **He struggled for freedom." 
 
 Against. — To struggle against something; as: 
 
 **He struggled against poverty." 
 
 Believe In, On (sometimes Upon) . 
 
 In. — To be persuaded of the truth of some- 
 thing; as: 
 
 **He believes in Buddhism." 
 
 On. — To exercise trust or confidence ; as : 
 
 **He believes on the Lord Jesus Christ." 
 
 Belong To, With, In. 
 
 To. — To be a possession, appurtenance, or 
 part of anything ; to be suitable ; as : 
 
 To hear with eyes belongs to love's fine wit. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 With. — To be required as an adjunct ; as : 
 **This book belongs with the other." 
 
J 
 
 20 THE CORRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 In, — To have a specific place or sphere; as: 
 **This book belongs in the book-case." 
 
 Bestow On or Upon. 
 
 On or upon. — To give; confer or impart 
 gratuitously; as: 
 
 To be able to bestow benefits or happiness on 
 those one loves, is surely the greatest blessing 
 conferred on man. — Thackeray. 
 
 Betray To, By, Into. 
 
 To. — To reveal or disclose something to a 
 person; as: 
 
 ^^She betrayed his secret to her friend.'' 
 ^*A turned leaf, a broken twig, the faintest 
 film of smoke against the sky, betrayed to him 
 the passage or presence of an enemy. 
 
 F. Clark. 
 
 By.— Ho reveal or disclose by means of an 
 agent; as: 
 
 *^His secret was betrayed by his enemies.'' 
 
 Into. — To deliver to ; as : 
 
 The Son of man shall be betrayed into the 
 hands of men.— Ma^. XVII., 22. 
 
 "He was betrayed into the snare by his 
 enemy. ' ' 
 
 Bind To, With (or In), By, Under, A"bout (or Around or 
 Round), Upon, At and In. 
 
 To. — To confine or fasten to something; as: 
 ^**They bound him to a raft;'' ^'They bound 
 
 him to secrecy." 
 
 With (or in). — To confine with (or m) ; as: 
 *^They bound him with (or in) chains." 
 By. — To oblige by means of something; as : 
 ^*He was bound by his contract to do the 
 
 work." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 31 
 
 Under, — To be obliged by some impelling 
 force; as: 
 
 **He was hound under penalty to fulfil his 
 contract. ' ' 
 Call On, For, At, By, After, In, Into, To, Up. 
 
 On or Upon, — (a) To make a brief visit; as: 
 
 ^*I called on (or upon) my neighbor." 
 
 (b) To demand from or appeal to; as: 
 
 *^I called on (or upon) him to pay the note." 
 
 (c) To invoke; as: 
 
 *^He called on (or upon) the name of the 
 Lord." 
 
 Precedence should be given to on in the fore- 
 going constructions. 
 
 For, — (a) To demand, require, claim; as: 
 
 *'The sin calls for punishment." 
 
 (b) To make a brief visit for the procurement 
 of ; as : 
 
 * ' I called for him on my way to the city. ' ' 
 
 At, — To make a short stop at a place; as: 
 
 **I called at his office. 
 
 By, — To name by; as : 
 
 < < They called him by the name of John. ' ' 
 
 After. — 'To name after; as : 
 
 ^^They called him John after his uncle." 
 
 In, — (a) To question; to cast doubt upon; to 
 dispute; as: 
 
 *^The circumstances were called in question." 
 
 (b) To collect; as: 
 
 ' ' He called in the money that was due him. ' ' 
 
 Into, — To bring w^o action; as: 
 
 ^'The exercise calls into play all the muscles 
 of the body." 
 
 To.--.(a) To demand explanation; as: 
 
 ' ' He was called to account for his behaviour. ' ' 
 
 (b) To recall; as: 
 
 ^^I cannot call this to mind." 
 
22 THE COKEECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 (c) To summon to begin; as: 
 **The meeting was called to order." 
 
 (d) To admit to the practice of; as: 
 **He was called to the bar." 
 
 Up. — To bring to mind ; as : 
 *^ These scenes call up the days of my child- 
 hood." 
 
 Care About (or For), For, Of. 
 
 About (or for). — To be solicitous; to be con- 
 cerned or interested in ; as : 
 
 *^I do not care about (or for) the conse- 
 quences." 
 
 Note. — The use of for with care, meaning to 
 be influenced by, as in the sentence, *^I don't 
 care for his opinion," or ^^I don't care for what 
 he says," is colloquial. 
 
 For. — To like; to value. 
 
 '^I do not care for (like) her as I did." 
 
 '^For who, if the rose bloomed forever, would 
 so greatly care for (value) the rose?" 
 
 Celetjpated For, In, By, With, Among (or Amid), Above. 
 
 For. — To be renowned for ; as : 
 
 **She was celebrated for her beauty." 
 
 In. — To be commemorated in; as : 
 
 ^*The historic event has been celebrated in 
 
 song. ' ' 
 By. — To commemorate by; as: 
 **The anniversary was celebrated by all the 
 
 people." 
 
 With. — To commemorate by means of; as: 
 '*The anniversary was celebrated by all the 
 
 people with songs and speeches." 
 Among. — Famed among; as: 
 ^*He was celebrated among his companions 
 
 for his rare musical gifts. ' ' 
 Above. — Exalted; as: 
 
HOW TO USE IT 23 
 
 **He was celebrated above his companion for 
 his rare musical gifts/' 
 
 Certain Of, About. 
 
 Of. — Assured of; as : 
 
 **I am certain of the correctness of this sen- 
 tence." 
 
 About. — Assured about; as: 
 ^*I am certain about your going." 
 Note. — Of and about are more or less inter- 
 changeably used with certain; thus: we may 
 say, **I am certain of your going," or **I am 
 .certain (feel sure as to) about your going;" on 
 the other hand, in some constructions, of is the 
 required word; as, *^I am certain of success." 
 
 Cheat Of (or Out Of). 
 
 To deceive; defraud, as: 
 A sorcerer that by his cunning cheated me of 
 the island. — Shakespeare. 
 **He was cheated out of his property." 
 
 Clear Of (or From) . 
 
 To liberate or disengage ; as : 
 
 **I shall clear myself of this annoyance;" **I 
 have cleared myself from all obligations in the 
 matter." 
 
 Coincide With. 
 
 To agree in ; as : 
 
 '*I coincide with you in your view of this." 
 
 ColUde With. 
 
 To strike together with force ; as : 
 **The ships collided with each other." 
 
 Combat With. 
 
 To fight tvith; as : 
 
 *^He needs must combat might ivith might." 
 
24 THE COEKECT PREPOSITION": 
 
 \/ Combine With, Into, In. 
 
 With, — ^To join forces mth; as : 
 You with your foes combine. — Dryden. 
 Into. — To unite; as : 
 
 ''The disturbing factions were combined into 
 one party." 
 
 In. — To unite in; as: 
 
 ''Acid and alkali are combined in a salt.'' 
 
 Common To, Among, With. 
 
 To. — Pertaining to or belonging ^o or partic- 
 ipated in by two or more persons ; as : 
 
 "These characteristics are common to both 
 you and me." 
 
 Among. — Participated in by several ; as : 
 "The fault is common among people of that 
 class." 
 
 With. — Participated in conjunction with; as : 
 "He has this fault in common with others of 
 his class." 
 
 \y Communicate To, With, About. 
 
 To. — To impart to; as: 
 
 "He communicated the news to her by mail. 
 
 With.^— To impart news as by mail ; as : 
 
 "I will communicate with her by letter, and 
 will let you know her decision. ' ' 
 
 About. — To impart news or information 
 about something; as: 
 
 "I will communicate with her about the mat- 
 ter." 
 
 V Compare With, To. 
 
 With.--liO bring together for the purpose of 
 noting points of likeness and difference ; as : 
 
 ^'Compare this piece of goods with that, and 
 tell me which is the better of the two." 
 
 To.— To liken one thing to another when only 
 a slight similarity exists; as: 
 
HOW TO USE IT 25 
 
 Solon compared the people to the sea, and 
 orators and counsellors to the winds; for the 
 sea would be calm and quiet if the winds did 
 not trouble it. — Bacon, 
 
 Comparison With, Between, To. 
 
 With, — A consideration of a likeness or a dif- 
 ference in regard to particular persons or 
 things; as: 
 
 *^A comparison of this man's qualifications 
 with that man's is unfair." 
 
 Betiveen, — Likeness or difference between; 
 as: 
 
 ^ ' She is so much his superior that there is no 
 comparison between them.'' 
 
 To. — Eesemblance to; as: 
 
 And half asleep she made comparison 
 
 Of that and these to her own faded self. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 Compatible With. 
 
 Capable of co-existing, or of being found to- 
 gether in the same subject; as: 
 
 The maintenance of an essentially religious 
 attitude of mind is compatible with absolute 
 freedom of speculation on all subjects, whether 
 scientific or metaphysical.— J. Fiske. 
 
 Complain Of. 
 
 To utter an expression of discomfort or sor- 
 row from some cause; to make a formal accu- 
 sation; as: 
 
 ^ ^ He complained of headache. ' ' 
 
 '*He complained of the lax methods of the 
 firm." 
 
 Complaint Against. 
 
 An expression of grief, regret, pain, censure, 
 resentment, discontent ; as : 
 
26 THE COKEECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 The Jews . . . laid many and grievous com- 
 plaints against Paul, which they could not prove. 
 
 — Acts XXV. 7. 
 Compliance With. 
 
 Concession; submission; as: 
 
 **His compliance with my request gave me 
 much pleasure. 
 
 Comply With. 
 
 To act in accordance with; as : 
 '^He complied with my request.'' 
 
 Composed Of. 
 
 To form by being combined with ; as : 
 *^ Water is composed of hydrogen and oxy- 
 gen. ' ' 
 
 Concerned At, For, With, In. 
 At. — To be disturbed by something; as: 
 ^*He was greatly concerned at the advance 
 
 that his enemy was making. ' ' 
 For. — To be disturbed about the welfare of a 
 
 person ; as : 
 
 ^*I am greatly concerned for his safety.'' 
 
 With. — To be deeply interested in ; as : 
 
 ^^I am concerned with matters pertaining to 
 
 commerce. ' ' 
 In. — To participate in; as : 
 **I am not at all concerned in this matter" (I 
 
 have no participation in it). 
 
 Concur With, In. 
 
 With. — To agree with a person ; as : 
 ' ^ I concur with you in this matter. ' ' 
 In. — To agree with another in a decision. 
 (See in in the preceding sentence.) 
 
 Condemn For or On Account Of. 
 
 To pronouncB judgment; as: 
 
 ^'He was condemned by all for his conduct." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 27 
 
 Confer On or Upon. 
 
 To bestow as a permanent gift ; as : 
 The Duke on the lady a kiss conferred, 
 As the courtly custom was of old. — Browning, 
 Coronation, to a king, confers no royal au- 
 thority upon him. — South, 
 
 Confide In, To. 
 
 In. — To trust in; as : 
 
 ' * The prince confided in his minister. ' ' 
 
 To, — To intrust with ; as : 
 
 Thou art the only one to whom I dare confide 
 my folly. — Lord Lyttleton, 
 
 To make in accordance with ; as : 
 
 Let me advise you to conform your Courses 
 to his Counsel. — Howell, 
 
 Wisdom bids us conform to our humble situ- 
 ation. — Goldsmith, 
 
 ConformaWe To (sometimes With). 
 In accordance with ; as : 
 A subtle, refined policy was conformable to 
 the genius of the Italians. — Prescott, 
 
 \j Conformity To or With, In. 
 
 To or with, — In accordance or agreement 
 with ; as : 
 
 ^*The example is in conformity to (or with) 
 the rule.'' 
 
 7t^.— Agreement in; as : 
 
 Space and duration have a great conformity 
 in this, that they are justly reckoned among our 
 simple ideas. — LocJce, 
 
 Congenial To. 
 
 Harmonious; companionable; suited or 
 adapted in character or feeling ; as : 
 
 To know God, we must have something with- 
 in ourselves congenial to Him. — Channing, 
 
38 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Congratulate On or Upon. 
 
 To wish joy to; to address with expressions 
 of sympathetic pleasure ; as : 
 
 ^'I congratulated him on (or upon) the birth 
 of his son/' 
 
 Connect With. 
 
 To join with; as: 
 
 The English . . . saw their sovereign 
 connecting himself by the strongest ties with 
 the most faithless and merciless persecutor. 
 
 — Macaulay. 
 v/ Connive With, At. 
 
 With, — To be in secret complicity with; as : 
 '*He connived with his partner in the deceit." 
 At. — To give aid or encouragement by silence 
 
 or forbearance ; as : 
 
 To connive at cruelty is to practice it. 
 
 — Jane Porter. 
 
 Consist Of, In, With. 
 
 0/.— Composed of; as : 
 
 Of the whole sum of human life, no small 
 part is that which consists of man's relations to 
 his country, and his feelings towards it. 
 
 —Gladstone. 
 
 In.-^To abide; rest; be comprised, per- 
 formed, or expressed; as: 
 
 True happiness consists, not in the multitude 
 of friends, 
 
 But in the worth and choice. — Ben Johnson. 
 
 With. — To be compatable with; as : 
 
 Bach opinion will consist well enough with 
 religion.— /S'ir T. Browne. 
 
 Consistent With, In. 
 
 TTi^/^.— Agreement with; as : 
 
 **The law is consistent with justice." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 39 
 
 In. — Uniform in; as: 
 
 *^He was consistent in all his conduct/' 
 
 Consonant To (sometimes With). 
 
 Harmonious; as: 
 
 ^^This rule is consonant to Scripture and 
 reason." 
 
 He was consonant with himself to the last. 
 
 — Goldsmith. 
 Consult With. 
 
 To seek the opinion of another ; as : 
 
 ^'He consulted with his lawyer about the 
 matter. ' ' 
 
 (Also used absolutely; as: ^^He consulted 
 his lawyer about the matter.'') 
 
 Contend With or Against, For. 
 
 With or against. — To struggle in opposition; 
 as: 
 
 ''He contended with (or against) this weak- 
 ness on his part, but with no avail." 
 
 For. — To strive for; to use earnest endeavor, 
 as for the purpose of defending, preserving, 
 etc., as: 
 
 All that I contend for is that I am not to set 
 out with a definition of what love is. — Steele. 
 
 Contiguous To. 
 
 Touching ; as : 
 
 A picturesque house contiguous to the church- 
 yard, which in Queen Elizabeth's time was a 
 palace, and was visited by that sovereign. 
 
 — W. Winter. 
 Contradictory To. 
 
 Antagonistic to; incapable of being together; 
 as: 
 
 Schemes . . . absurd and contradictory 
 to common sense. — Addison. 
 
30 THE COREECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 \J Contrast With. 
 
 To place in opposition or represent in com- 
 parison in order to show unlikeness ; as : 
 ' It was his great delight to contrast the pleas- 
 ures of home with the hardwships of school. 
 
 — Maria Edgeworth. 
 
 Contrary To. 
 Opposite, Against. 
 **His assertions were contrary to reason.". . . 
 
 Controversy With, Against, Between. 
 
 With. — ^Argument with; disputation in re- 
 gard to ; as : 
 
 *^He was engaged in a controversy with his 
 employers, about the matter." 
 
 About. — Argument about. 
 
 (See ahout in preceding sentence.) 
 
 Between. — Argument between two persons; 
 as: 
 
 *'The controversy between them grew fiercer 
 every moment." 
 
 Convenient For, To. 
 For. — Affording certain facilities; as: 
 **It will be convenient for me to come." 
 To. — Favorable as to position, time, etc. ; as : 
 **The house is convenient to the station." 
 
 Converse With. 
 
 To talk with; as : 
 
 **He conversed with his teacher for several 
 
 hours." 
 
 Conversant With, About (sometimes In). 
 
 With.— 
 
 To be familiar with; as : .... 
 
 *^He was thoroughly conversant with the sub- 
 ject under discussion." 
 
 About or with. — Having concern or connec- 
 tion with ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT . 31 
 
 Education is conversant about children. 
 
 —Sir E. Wotten. 
 
 Moral action is conversant almost wholly with 
 evidence which in itself is only probable. 
 
 — Gladstone. 
 
 Convert To, Into. 
 
 To, — To change ^o; as: 
 ^^He was converted to that belief." 
 Into, — To change into; as: 
 ^^The money was converted into food and 
 clothing for the poor." 
 
 Copy After, From or Out Of. 
 
 After, — To imitate; as: 
 
 ^*He copied after his teacher." 
 
 From or out of, — To make a duplicate from; 
 as: 
 
 ^^He copied the article from (or out of) the 
 newspaper." 
 
 There can be no doubt that laws apparently 
 good are (as it were) things copied out of the 
 very tables of that high everlasting law. 
 
 — Hooker, 
 Correspond With or To, With, To. 
 
 With or to, — To be in conformity or agree- 
 ment with; have an answering form or nature; 
 as: 
 
 *^The promise and the performance do not 
 correspond with (or to) each other." 
 
 **His expenditures do not correspond to (or 
 with) his income." 
 
 With, — To hold communion; as: 
 
 ''They have corresponded tvith each other for 
 several years." 
 
 To, — To be in the same or an analogous rela- 
 tion to one set of objects that something else is 
 to another set of objects ; as : 
 
32 THE COKKECT PREPOSITION- 
 
 ^ ^ The United States House of Eepresentatives 
 corresponds to the New York Assemhly.'^ 
 
 Couple By, With, Together, To, In. 
 
 By. ^— To link by; as: 
 
 ^ ^ The cars were coupled by the workmen with 
 iron chains/' 
 
 With.— To link with. 
 
 (See with in preceding sentence.) 
 
 They lost no time in coupling his name with 
 the names of the most hateful tyrants of whom 
 history makes mention. — Macaulay. 
 
 Together. — To link together ; as : 
 
 The cars were coupled together. 
 
 In. — The cars were coupled in pairs. 
 
 Covered With, By. 
 
 With. — To envelop with; to spread over; as: 
 
 **The ground was covered with snow.'' 
 
 By. — To envelop hy ; as : 
 
 ^^The leaves were gently covered by the pro- 
 tecting snow." 
 
 Cure Of. 
 
 To restore to health or to a sound state ; as : 
 
 ' ^ He was cured of fever. ' ' 
 Danger Of. 
 
 Exposure to any chance of evil of any kind; 
 as: 
 
 He that is but half a philosopher is in danger 
 of being an atheist. — Bp. Atterbury. 
 Dash Against, Upon, With. 
 
 Against. — Throw suddenly and violently; 
 
 as: 
 If you dash a stone against a stone * * * 
 
 it maketh a sound. — Bacon. 
 
 Upon. — An impetuous movement ; as : 
 
 ' ' The waves dash upon the rocks. ' ' 
 
 With. — To sprinkle ; bespatter ; splash ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 33 
 
 Vast basins of marble dashed mth perpetual 
 cascades. — Walpole, 
 
 Dated At or From. 
 
 At, — To mark with a date ; as : 
 
 A letter was received from him dated at a 
 small Dutch village. — Irving, 
 
 From, — To reckon from some point in time; 
 as: 
 
 ^^Protestanism dates from 1517." 
 
 Deaf To. 
 
 Unmoved ; as : 
 
 * * He was deaf to all entreaty. ' ' 
 Deal In, With, By or Toward, Out, Between. 
 
 In. — To traffic; as: 
 
 **He deals in pig-iron." 
 
 *^In, With, By or Toward, — To act; in a mat- 
 ter ; with, by, or toward sl person or thing ; as : 
 
 **He dealt unfairly in this matter." 
 
 I will deal with you as one should deal with 
 his Confessor. — Howells, 
 
 Such an one deals not fairly hy his own mind. 
 
 — Locke, 
 
 With, — To conspire ; as : 
 
 Now have they dealt with my pothecary to 
 poison me. — Jonson, 
 
 Out. — To distribute ; as : 
 
 And Rome deals out her blessings and her 
 gold. — Tickell. 
 
 Between, — To act as an intermediary; as: 
 
 Sometimes he that deals between man and 
 man. — Bacon. 
 
 (Also absolutely ; as : The Chutes and I deal 
 extremely together. — Walpole,) 
 Debar From (sometimes witb Of). 
 
 To bar or shut out ; as : 
 
 Their wages were so low as to debar them 
 
34 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 * * * from the common decencies of civil- 
 ized life. — Buckle, 
 
 She was expiring; and yet I was debarred 
 the small comfort of weeping by her. 
 
 — Goldsmith. 
 
 Decadence Of. 
 
 Falling away ; as : 
 
 One feature * * * ^as the gradual deca- 
 dence of patriotism. — Lechie. 
 Decide On or Upon. 
 
 To determine ; as : 
 
 Shall I wait a day ere I decide 
 
 On doing or not doing justice here? 
 
 — Browning, 
 
 ^^He has decided upon his course.'' 
 Defend From, Against. 
 
 From, — To protect from danger ; as : 
 
 ''Defend us from the perils and dangers of 
 this night.'' 
 
 Against, — To maintain against attack; as: 
 
 ^^He defended himself against four men." 
 Defer To. 
 
 To submit in opinion ; as : 
 
 Colonel Sherman here says * * * and I 
 guess we had better defer to his opinion. — Lin- 
 coln. 
 Deference To, For. 
 
 To, — A yielding in opinion ; as : 
 
 Deference to the authority of thoughtful and 
 sagacious men. — Whewell. 
 
 For. — Eespect, regard; as: 
 
 He has no deference for their inclinations, 
 tempers, or conditions. — Locke. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 35 
 
 Deficient In. 
 
 Lacking; as: 
 
 The style was indeed deficient in ease and 
 variety. — Macaulay. 
 
 Delighted At, In, With, By. 
 
 At. — Satisfaction ; as : 
 
 ' * I am delighted at the progress you are mak- 
 ing/' 
 
 In. — To take pleasure in; as: 
 
 '^He delighted in doing good deeds." 
 
 With. — Greatly pleased ; as : 
 
 *^I am delighted with my new home.'' 
 
 By. — To affect with rapture ; as : 
 
 ^^The ear is delighted by harmony." 
 Deliver From, Out Of, Of, To, Into, Up, Over, At. 
 
 From, Out of. — To free ; as : 
 
 ^^He was delivered out of the hand of the 
 enemy and from the fear of death." 
 
 Of. — To disburden ; as : 
 
 Tully was long before he could be delivered 
 of a few verses. — Peacham. 
 
 To, Into. — Transfer ; as : 
 
 **The package was delivered to the boy." 
 
 Thou shalt deliver Pharaoh's cup into his 
 hand. — Gen. xl. 13. 
 
 Up, Over. — To yield; as: 
 
 Deliver up their children to the famine. 
 
 — Jer. XVIII. 2. 
 
 '*He delivered over the money held in trust." 
 
 At. — Place; as: 
 
 ^^He delivered a speech at Dover." 
 Demand Of, Upon, From. 
 
 Of. — To require as by right ; as : 
 
 We demand of superior men that they be 
 superior in this. — Emerson. 
 
 Upon. — A claim, as : 
 
36 THE CORRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 **What are your demands upon the estate/' 
 
 From, — A request ; as : 
 
 **Upon a demand from the court, the books 
 were produced.'' 
 Denounce Against, To, For. 
 
 Against, — Proclaim; as: 
 
 The laws of the United States have de- 
 nounced heavy penalties against the traffic in 
 slaves. — Webster, 
 
 To, — Inform against ; as : 
 
 *^ Innocent citizens were constantly denounced 
 to the government." 
 
 For, — Stigmatize; as: 
 
 Denounced for a heretic. — Sir T. More. 
 Depend From, On, Upon. 
 
 From. — To hang; as: 
 From the frozen beard 
 Long icicles depend. — Dryden. 
 
 On, — To have full reliance ; as : 
 
 **I depend on you to do so." 
 
 Upon. — To be dependent upon; as: 
 
 *'The price asked for a commodity depends 
 upon the amount on hand." 
 Dependent On or Upon. 
 
 Subordinate ; subject to ; as : 
 
 ** Nature is dependent on God." 
 
 ** All men are largely dependent upon one an- 
 other." 
 Deprive Of. 
 
 To take something away ; as : 
 
 Each colony might deprive itself of 
 
 some right or power. — A. Oilman. 
 Derogate From. 
 
 Detract; as: 
 
 *^The charge cannot derogate from his 
 honor." 
 
EOW TO USE IT 37 
 
 Derogation To, Of, From. 
 
 To, — Disparagement; as: 
 
 I hope it is no derogation to the Christian re- 
 ligion. — Locke. 
 
 Of. — Detraction; as: 
 
 He counted it no derogation of his manhood 
 to be seen to weep. — F. W. Robertson, 
 
 From. — A lessening of value or estimation; 
 as: 
 
 It reads the Scriptures as literature, yet with 
 no derogation from their inspiration. — Hunger. 
 
 Derogatory To (sometimes From). 
 
 Detracting in value ; lessening in good repute ; 
 as: 
 
 His language was severely censured by some 
 of his brother peers as derogatory to their or- 
 der. — Macaulay. 
 
 Derogatory from the wisdom and power of 
 the Author of nature. — Cheyne. 
 
 Descend From, On, Upon or To. 
 
 From. — To pass from a higher to (or into) 
 a lower place; to pass down, as from genera- 
 tion to generation ; as : ^ 
 ^ ^ He descended from the tower. ' ' 
 *^The robbers descended into the plain." 
 **John Eandolph was descended from Poca- 
 hontas.'' 
 
 On or Upon. — To come violently or menac- 
 ingly; as: 
 
 And on the suitors let thy wrath descend. 
 
 — Pope. 
 
 *^The fleet descended upon Copenhagen." 
 To. — To lower oneself in moral or social 
 
 standing ; to pass, as from general to particular 
 
 statements; as: 
 
38 THE COKRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 *^He would not descend to baseness/' 
 
 ^^ Historians rarely descend to those details 
 
 from which alone the real state of a community 
 
 can be collected. — Macaulay, 
 
 Deserve, Of. 
 To merit ; as : 
 '^He deserves well of his country." 
 
 J Desirous Of, To. 
 
 0/. — ^Wishing to obtain ; as : 
 *^He was desirous of obtaining a seat in the 
 cabinet. ' ' 
 
 To. — Eagerly wishing; as; 
 
 a great company of men, as desirous to 
 
 go in, but durst not. — Butler. 
 
 Desist From. 
 
 Forbear; as: 
 
 Eecommending their countrymen to desist 
 from the use of tea. — Irving. 
 
 Despair Of. 
 Become hopeless ; as : 
 ^^They despair of his life.'' 
 Destine To, For. 
 
 To. — Foreordain ; as : 
 
 We are decreed. 
 Eeserved, and destined to eternal woe. 
 
 — Milton. . 
 
 For. — To appoint to a purpose ; as : 
 *'He was destined for the law." 
 
 Destructive To, Of. 
 
 To. — Pernicious; ruinous; as: 
 
 **Evil examples are destructive to the morals 
 of youth. ' ' 
 
 Of. — Causing destruction ; as : 
 
 ** Intemperance is destructive of life." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 39 
 
 Detract From. 
 
 Take away from ; as : 
 
 It detracts nothing from military skill to have 
 been aided by political sagacity. — Canning, 
 
 Devolve On or Upon (sometimes To or Into). 
 
 To transfer ; transmit ; as : 
 
 The melancholy task devolved on Guicciar- 
 dini. — Macaulay. 
 
 They devolved their power upon their 
 
 favorite. — Burke, 
 
 His estate devolved to Lord Somerville. 
 
 — Johnson. 
 
 They devolved their whole authority into the 
 hands of the council of sixty. — Addison. 
 
 Dictate Of, To. 
 
 Of. — A guiding principle ; as : 
 
 It was the dictate of trade to keep the negro 
 down. — Emerson. 
 
 To. — To speak with final authority; as: 
 
 Bonaparte now dictated to all the nations. 
 
 — Canning. 
 
 Die Of, By, From, For, In, Witliin, To, Unto. 
 
 Ofy By, From, For. — To cease to live ; as : 
 
 *^Some soldiers die of disease, some hy the 
 sword, and some from exposure ; but all die for 
 their country.'' 
 
 In, Within. — Figurative ; as : 
 
 ** Ambition died within him." 
 
 ,When I look upon the tombs of the great 
 . . . envy dies in me. — Addison. 
 
 To, Unto. — Conquer desire or interest ; as : 
 
 **To enter a monastery is to die to the 
 world." 
 
 * * To die unto sin ; to live unto righteousness. ' ' 
 
 Differ From. With. 
 
 From. — Unlikeness; as; 
 
40 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 In all . . . how little the younger Eng- 
 land differs from the elder. — Freeman, 
 
 From or With, — To be of a contrary opinion ; 
 as: 
 
 The first thing ... is to dare to differ 
 from his father. — TF. Phillips, 
 
 With, — To have a difference; quarrel; as: 
 
 We'll never differ with a crowded pit. 
 
 — Rowe. 
 
 Difference Between, Among, In, Of, With, From, By. 
 
 Between. — ^Distinction between; as: 
 
 ^*The difference between natural and revealed 
 religion. ' ' 
 
 Among. — Controversy ; as : 
 
 **The differences among the men were ad- 
 justed peaceably.'' 
 
 In, — Variation; as: 
 
 ** There is a noticeable difference in their ap- 
 pearance." 
 
 Of. — That by which one thing differs from 
 another; as: 
 
 The marks and differences of sovereignty. 
 
 — Davies. 
 
 With. — Quarrel ; as : 
 
 I am myself a good deal ruffled by a differ- 
 ence I have had with Julia. — Sheridan. 
 
 From (v. t.) — To distinguish ; as : 
 
 Thou mayest difference gods from men. 
 
 — Chapman, 
 
 By (v. t.) — To make different; as: * 
 
 Differenced by their garlands only. 
 
 — Jonson, 
 Different From. 
 
 Not the same; as: 
 
 *^He is very different from his brother." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 41 
 
 (Or used absolutely; as : ^'The two boys are 
 very different.'') 
 Differently From. 
 
 In a different manner ; as : 
 
 ^*My book is bound differently from yours." 
 
 Diflaculty In, Of, About. 
 In, — Obstruction to belief or consent ; as : 
 Difficulties in revelation are especially given 
 to prove our faith. — Newman, 
 
 Of, — That which makes a thing hard to ac- 
 complish; as: 
 
 *^The chief difficulty of the enterprise is the 
 scarcity of labor." 
 About. — Obstructive behavior; as: 
 ** There was some difficulty about his signing 
 the deed." 
 
 Digress From, Into. 
 
 From, — To turn aside from the main subject 
 to dwell on some incidental matter; as: 
 
 '*He frequently digressed from the story to 
 describe the scenery." 
 
 Into. — To deviate; swerve; as: 
 
 Let the student of our history digress into 
 whatever other fields he will. — Stephens, 
 
 Dilate On or Upon. 
 
 To speak at length ; as : 
 But stillthey on their ancient joys dilate. 
 
 — Crabbe. 
 
 It is unnecessary to dilate upon what has 
 been sufficiently pointed out. — Craih, 
 
 (Or absolutely; as: ^^I intend to speak to 
 the point, and will neither digress nor dilate.'') 
 Diminish From, By. 
 
 From. — To take way; as: 
 
 *^ Nothing is to be diminished from the royal 
 dignity." 
 
42 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 By. — To reduce in any way ; as : 
 
 His resources had been greatly diminished by 
 the war. — Bancroft. 
 Diminution Of. 
 
 Eeduction ; lessening ; as : 
 
 This diminution of profits would cause capital 
 to be withdrawn. — Fawcett. 
 
 Dip In or Into. 
 
 To engage slightly in any affair; to pene- 
 trate; as: 
 
 We dipt in all 
 That treats of whatsoever is. — Tennyson, 
 
 Dipped into a multitude of books. — Macaulay, 
 
 When I dipt into the future. — Tennyson. 
 Direct To, Toward, At. 
 
 To. — Indicate direction; as: 
 
 * * Can you direct me to the Post Office ? ' ' 
 
 Toward. — Determine in respect to direction; 
 as: 
 
 I have sometimes reflected for what reason 
 the Turks should appoint such marks to direct 
 their faces toward in prayer. — Maundrell. 
 
 At. — To point or aim at ; as : 
 
 His remarks were directed at you. 
 Disaffection Of, To. ' 
 
 Of. — Disloyalty, hostility ; as : 
 
 The King was made desperate by the disaf- 
 fection of his Barons. — Dickens. 
 
 To. — Dislike; as: 
 
 '^Disaffection to religion." 
 Disagree With, In, About. 
 
 With. — Unfavorable in action or effect ; as : 
 
 The water of the Nile sometimes disagrees 
 for a few days ivith strangers. — Rawlinson. 
 
 In, With, About. — Differ in opinion, with a 
 person, about a matter ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 43 
 
 ^^ Though he disagreed in opinion with me 
 about the wisdom of going, he yielded to my 
 desire. '^ 
 
 Disagreeable To. 
 
 Unpleasing; distasteful; as: 
 
 That which is disagreeable to one is many 
 times agreeable to another. — Wallaston. 
 
 ^^Food is sometimes disagreeable to the 
 taste.'' 
 
 Disagreement With, Between, Of, To. 
 
 With. — A wrangle, a falling out ; as : 
 
 His resignation was owing to a disagreement 
 
 with his coadjutor. — Coxe. 
 Between, — A misunderstanding; as: 
 ^^The disagreement between the two men has 
 
 become more acute." 
 
 Of , . . To. — Lack of conformity; as: 
 From these different relations . . . arises 
 
 an agreement or disagreement of some things 
 
 to others. — Clarke. 
 
 Disappointed In, Of, By, About. 
 
 In. — Fail to fulfil expectation ; as : 
 * ' I was disappointed in his new book. ' ' 
 Of. — Hindered from obtaining something de- 
 sired ; as : 
 
 Being thus disappointed of our purpose, we 
 gathered the fruit we found ripe. 
 
 — Capt. John Smith. 
 
 By. — Defeat the aim of ; as : 
 
 **They disappointed us by remaining away.'' 
 
 About. — That which causes disappointment; 
 as: 
 
 **We were very much disappointed about the 
 weather. ' ' 
 
44 ' THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Disapprove Of. 
 
 To regard as wrong ; as : 
 
 *^She disapproves of dancing/' 
 
 (Also absolutely; as: *'Tlie court disap- 
 proved the verdict. '0 
 Discontented With. 
 
 Dissatisfied; as: 
 
 **The peasants are becoming discontented 
 with their lot in life. ' ' 
 
 Discourage From. 
 
 Deter ; as : 
 
 *'You need not be discouraged from a like at- 
 tempt.'' 
 
 Discouragement To. 
 
 That which deters from an undertaking or 
 from a course of conduct ; as : 
 
 ^^Good laws present discouragement to vice." 
 Discrepancy Between, In. 
 
 Betiveen, — Discordance ; as : 
 
 ^* There is a noticeable discrepancy between 
 his appearance and his manners." 
 
 In, — Disagreement between things expected 
 to correspond; as: 
 
 i i There is a discrepancy in his accounts. ' ' 
 
 Discrepant From. 
 
 Different; as: 
 
 The Egyptians were . . . the most oddly 
 discrepant from the rest in their manner of 
 worship. — Cudworth, 
 
 Discriminate From, Between. 
 
 From, — To distinguish from something else; 
 as: 
 
 To discriminate the goats from the sheep. 
 
 — Barrow. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 45 
 
 Between. — To draw a distinction; as: 
 We may not be able to discriminate between 
 the sensitive plant and the animal. — Hopkins, 
 
 Disdain For. 
 
 Contempt and aversion ; as : 
 
 **The rich often have an unjust disdain for 
 the poor.'^ 
 Disengage From. 
 
 Eelease; as: 
 
 * ' The boat was disengaged from the weeds. ' ' 
 
 Disgust With, At, By. 
 
 With, — Extreme dislike or distaste ; as : 
 *^We were disgusted with the man's vulgar 
 
 pretensions. ^ ' 
 At, — To offend the mind or moral sense of; 
 
 as: 
 **They were disgusted at his cowardice." 
 By, — That which creates disgust ; as : 
 Alarmed and disgusted by the proceedings of 
 
 the convention. — Macaulay, 
 
 Dislike To, Of. 
 To, — Aversion ; as : 
 
 God's grace . . . give him continual dis- 
 like to sin. — Hammond, 
 Of, — Eepugnance ; as : 
 His dislike of a particular kind of sensational 
 
 stories. — Ward. 
 
 Disparagement To. 
 Diminution of value or excellence ; as : 
 It ought to be no disparagement to a star that 
 
 it is not the sun. — South, 
 
 Disparity In or Of, Between. 
 In or Of, — Difference in any respect; as: 
 **A disparity in or of tastes between husband 
 
 and wife is unfortunate." 
 Between, — Inequality ; as : 
 
46 THE CORRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 The disparity between God and his intelligent 
 creatures. — Taylor. 
 
 Dispense With. 
 
 To do without; as: 
 
 '*I can dispense with your services." 
 
 Dispute With, Against, For. 
 
 With, Against. — To engage in argument; as: 
 ' Therefore disputed he in the synagogue with 
 the Jews. — Acts xvii. 17. 
 
 **He disputed against the measure.'' 
 
 For. — Compete; as: 
 
 *^They disputed for the prize." 
 
 (Also absolutely; as: **The victory was 
 fiercely disputed. ") 
 
 Disqualify For (sometimes From). 
 To render unfit ; as : 
 
 '^111 health disqualifies the body for labor." 
 Men are not disqualified . . . from being 
 
 received in high society. — Southey. 
 
 Dissent From. 
 
 To be of a contrary opinion ; as : 
 
 They took the freedom to dissent from one 
 another in discourse. — Addison. 
 
 Dissuade From. 
 Divert by argument or appeal ; as : 
 **I could not dissuade him from his purpose." 
 
 Distaste For. 
 
 Dislike; as: 
 
 A certain taste for figures coupled with a still 
 stronger distaste for Latin. — Clerhe. 
 
 Distinct From. 
 
 Standing apart ; as : 
 
 Why ever make man's good distinct from 
 God's? — Browning. • ^ 
 
HOW TO USE IT 47 
 
 Distinction Between, Of . 
 
 Between, — A characteristic difference; as: 
 
 I . . . studied the distinctions between 
 religious and civil rights. — Milton. 
 
 Of. — Eegard the differences ; as : 
 
 Jesus teaches universal love without distinc- 
 tion of race, merit, or rank. — Geikie. 
 Distinguish Between, By, Into, From, For. 
 
 Between. — To make a distinction ; as : 
 The reader must distinguish between prov- 
 erbs and those polite speeches which beautify 
 conversation. — Swift. 
 By. — To make noted ; as : 
 '*Nero distinguished himself by his cruelty." 
 Into. — To separate by classification ; as : 
 The seasons of year at Tonquin are distin- 
 guished into Wet and Dry. — Dampier. 
 From. — To tell apart; as : 
 *'The fog was so heavy we could not distin- 
 guish one object from another. ' ' 
 
 To mark off by some characteristic ; as : 
 ** California is distinguished for its salubrious 
 climate. ' ' 
 Diversion Of, To. 
 Turning of an object to another purpose; as: 
 ''Cutting of the tops causes reversion of the 
 sap to the sprouts that are backward. ' ' 
 Divest Of. 
 
 To strip of anything that surrounds or at- 
 tends; as: 
 
 ^ It requires reflection to divest Nature of her 
 living expression. — Max Miiller. 
 Divide Among, Between, With, In, Into, On, Whom, From, By. 
 Among. — ^Distribute among many ; as : 
 ''The profits were divided among the share- 
 holders." 
 
48 THE COEKECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Between, — Divide between two ; as : 
 
 **The profits were divided between the part- 
 ners. ^^ 
 
 With. — Share with; as : 
 
 *^The profits were divided with the work- 
 men." 
 
 In, Into. — To cause to be separate ; as : 
 
 Divide the living child in two. — 1 Kings iii, 
 25. 
 
 **The equator divides the earth into two 
 hemispheres.'' 
 
 On, Upon. — To disagree in opinion ; as : 
 
 *^The community is divided on this question." 
 
 * * The legislature was divided upon this 
 point." 
 
 From. — To separate ; as : 
 
 Let it divide the waters from the waters. 
 
 — Gen. i, 6. 
 
 By. — To disunite ; as : 
 
 **They were divided by death." 
 
 Due From, To, At, In. 
 
 From. — That is looked for ; as : 
 
 * ' A storm is due from the West Indies. ' ' 
 
 To.— Owing ^o; as: 
 
 ' * The delay was due to an accident. ' ' 
 
 At, In. — Appointed or expected to arrive ; as : 
 
 *'The train is due at noon." 
 
 *^He is due in New York to-morrow." 
 
 Dwell On, Upon, In, On, At. 
 
 On, Upon. — Expatiate, pause or tarry ; as : 
 I must not divell on that defeat of fame. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 
 The mind must abide and dwell upon things. 
 
 — South. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 49 
 
 In, On, At. — Eeside ; to live as a settled resi- 
 dent ; as : 
 
 *'He dwells in New York either on Fifth Ave- 
 nue or at the Knickerbocker Hotel.'' 
 
 Eager For, To, In. 
 
 For, — Impatiently anxious ; as : 
 
 *^The men were eager for the fray.*' 
 
 To. — Ardently desiring ; as: 
 
 *^He was eager to see his friends." 
 
 In. — Impetuous; as: 
 
 *^The hounds were eager in the chase." 
 
 Embark At, For, In. 
 
 At, For. — To go aboard a ship for a voy- 
 age ; as : 
 
 ^^The troops embarked at London for 
 Malta." 
 
 In. — To make a beginning in some occupa- 
 tion, invest; as: 
 
 Slow to embark in an undertaking. 
 
 — Macaulay, 
 
 **He embarked his fortune in trade." 
 
 Embellish With, By. 
 
 With, By. — To set off with ornamentation; 
 as: 
 
 ^'The garden was embellished with flowers 
 and shrubs." 
 
 **The book was embellished by engravings." 
 
 By. — The person who ornaments or deco- 
 rates ; as : 
 
 The story, though embellished by Diomedes, 
 still was founded upon old tradition. 
 
 -— 'De Quincey. 
 Emerge From. 
 
 To come into view ; as : 
 
 Thetis emerging from the deep. — Dryden. 
 
50 THE COERECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Employ In, About, On, Upon, By. 
 
 Occupation ; as : 
 
 **They were employed in removing the 
 wreck. ' ' 
 
 *^The two men were employed about the 
 bank.'' 
 
 *'Many men are employed on the building." 
 
 **He is employed upon a work of much diffi- 
 culty." 
 
 By, — Employer ; as : 
 
 **He is employed by the government." 
 Emulous Of. 
 
 Inclined to irritative rivalry; desirous of 
 equaling or excelling ; as : 
 
 Each moment has its sickle, emulous. 
 
 Of Time's enormous scythe. — Young. 
 Enamour Of, Of or With. 
 
 Of. — To inflame with love ; as : 
 
 He became passionately enamoured of this 
 shadow of a dream. — Irving. 
 
 Of or With. — To be captivated with some ob- 
 ject ; as : 
 
 **He was deeply enamoured of or with sci- 
 ence. ' ' 
 
 *^I was so enamoured with this place. ..." 
 
 —DeFoe. 
 Encompassed By. 
 
 Surrounded; as: 
 
 We live encompassed by mysteries. — Lewes. 
 
 Encourage With, In, By, To. 
 
 With. — Aid or promise ; as : 
 
 ^^He encouraged him with the promise of re- 
 ward." 
 
 In. — In spirit ; as : 
 
 '^He was encouraged in his undertaking by 
 the approval of his superiors. ' ' 
 
HOW TO USE IT 51 
 
 By, — To help forward ; as : 
 
 ''The enterprise was encouraged by the sup- 
 port of the citizens." 
 
 To, — Incite to action ; as : 
 
 *'He was encouraged to renewed exertion." 
 
 At, — Hopeful ; as : 
 
 ''We feel encouraged at the favorable turn of 
 events." 
 
 Encouragement To> Of. 
 
 To. — Incitement to action or perseverance; 
 as: 
 
 "These laws are an encouragement to vir- 
 tue." 
 
 Of. — Promoting or advancing ; as : 
 
 All generous encouragement of arts. — Otway, 
 
 Encroach On, Upon. 
 
 To make inroads, trespass ; as : 
 
 Among primitive men . . . one encroaches 
 on another's territory. — H, Spencer, 
 
 "Old age is encroaching upon me." 
 Endear To. 
 
 Eender valued or beloved ; as : 
 
 "He endeared himself to all his friends." 
 
 Endow With, By. 
 
 With, — To furnish, as with some gift or qual- 
 ity ; as : 
 
 Beings endowed with life, but not with soul. 
 
 — Holmes, 
 
 By, — That which endows ; as : 
 
 "Man is endowed by his Maker with reason." 
 Endue With. 
 
 Invest with some spiritual or moral qual- 
 ity ; as : 
 
 Let them be men endued with wisdom from 
 above. — Wesley. 
 
53 THE COREECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Engage In, With, For, To. 
 In. — To occupy one's self; as: 
 *^He is zealously engaged in the cause.'' 
 With, -^1^0 enter into a conflict ; occupy ivith; 
 
 as: 
 
 '^The troops engaged with the enemy." 
 
 *^I was engaged with my lawyer for several 
 
 hours. ' ' 
 
 For, — To secure for aid, use, or the like ; as : 
 '^The carriage is engaged for the evening." 
 To. — Betrothal; as: 
 I have engaged myself to a dear friend. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Engrave In, On, Upon, With. 
 
 In, On, Upon. — To cut or carve in sunken pat- 
 terns, on or upon sl stone ; in, on or upon metal 
 
 or wood ; as : 
 . . . Whose names are engraved upon the 
 
 stone. — Howell. 
 
 '*From Edith" was engraved on the blade. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 
 ^^ Engraved in the wood were these words 
 • • • 
 In or On. — Impress deeply ; as : 
 Engrave principles in men's minds. — Locke, 
 
 **His teachings are engraved on my mem- 
 ory. ' ' 
 
 With. — That which is cut in ; as : 
 
 Like ... a signet shalt thou engrave the 
 two stones with the names of the children of 
 Israel. — Ex. xxviii, 11. 
 Enjoin On, Upon, Prom. 
 
 On, Upon. — To lay a command or injunction 
 upon; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 53 
 
 ^* Diligence was enjoined upon the pupil/' 
 ''I enjoin it on you not to disappoint me." 
 From, — In law, to prohibit or restrain; as: 
 This is a suit to enjoin the defendants from 
 disturbing the plaintiffs. — Kent, 
 
 Enlarge On, Upon, By. 
 
 On, Upon, — To state at large; as: 
 It would be easy to enlarge , , . on the influ- 
 ence of the surrounding world. — Foster, 
 
 To enlarge upon this theme. — M, Arnold. 
 
 By, — To grow larger ; as : 
 *'A plant enlarges by growth." 
 
 Enraged At, With, Against. 
 
 At, — Made furious by some act ; as : 
 **IIe was enraged at the insult offered." 
 With, Against, — Anger with or against a per- 
 son; as: 
 
 **The King was enraged with (or against) 
 his nobles for their duplicity." 
 
 Enrich With, By. 
 
 With, — Adorn ; furnish with desirable acqui- 
 sitions; as: 
 
 Culture of Greece and Eome enriched with 
 precious jewels of old-world lore. — Clifford, 
 
 The columns are enriched with hieroglyphics. 
 
 — PococJce, 
 
 By, — To make rich ; as : 
 
 **He was enriched by a legacy." 
 
 '*The land was enriched by irrigation." 
 EnroU, Enroll In, Among, For. 
 
 In. — To enlist in a military body, society, or 
 the like ; as : 
 
 *^He left home and enrolled in the army." 
 
 Among, — Enter a name in a list ; as ; 
 
54 THE COKKECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Heroes . . . were enrolled among their 
 brethren of the skies. — Swift, 
 
 For. — For service ; as : 
 
 **The soldiers were enrolled for service in 
 the Philippines. ' ' 
 
 Ensnare, Insnare By, With, In. 
 
 By. — Entrap; as: 
 
 ^'He was ensnared hy the traitor.'* 
 
 With. — Allure by artifice ; as : 
 
 ^^He was ensnared with the man's profession 
 of friendship.'' 
 
 In. — Entangle ; as : 
 
 * ' The Baron suddenly found himself ensnared 
 in the toils of a conspiracy. ' ' 
 
 Enter, In, Into, On, Upon. 
 
 In. — To inscribe, as in a book ; as : 
 *^The items are entered in the day book." 
 Into. — Form part of ; join in ; become a party 
 to ; engage in, comprehend ; treat fully ; exam- 
 ine ; get to the inside of ; as : 
 
 * ^ Oxygen enters into many compounds. ' ' 
 **He enters into the children's sports." 
 
 * * The city has entered into a compact to beau- 
 tify the parks." 
 
 The original project of discovery had been 
 entered into with indefinite expectations of gain. 
 
 — Prescott. 
 
 He entered freely into the distresses and per- 
 sonal feelings of his men. — Prescott. 
 
 I cannot now enter into the particulars of my 
 travels. — Gray. 
 
 Into the merits of these we have hardly en- 
 tered at all,— Brougham, 
 
HOW TO USE IT 55 
 
 Entered we are not into the visible Church 
 before . . . Baptism. — Hooker. 
 
 On, Upon. — Make a beginning of ; as: 
 I protest . . . yon are seriously resolved to 
 enter on your probation. — Sheridan. 
 
 * * Sartor Kesartus ' ' is a hard study, but when 
 once entered upon, how poetical ! — Stedman, 
 
 Entertain, At, By, With. 
 
 At /By, — Care for by hospitality ; as: 
 
 ^^The Ambassador was entertained hy the 
 President at the White House. ' ' 
 
 With, — Divert ; as : 
 
 * ' The club will entertain with music and read-' 
 ings. ' ' 
 
 Entrance Into, On, Upon. 
 
 Into, — The act of entering a place, into an 
 office ; as : 
 
 *'His entrance into the room was followed by 
 a deep silence." 
 
 '*Soon after his entrance into office, he dis- 
 missed the chief. ' ' 
 
 On, Upon. — Entering on or upon a work or 
 course of action, upon the duties of an office ; as : 
 
 **He entered on (or upon) the duties of the 
 office immediately after his election." 
 
 Entranced In, With. 
 
 In. — Carried away, as in a trance ; as : 
 **She sat entranced in thought." 
 With. — Enraptured ; as : 
 **He was entranced with her beauty." 
 
 Envelop In. 
 
 Surround ; inwrap ; as : 
 
 ' ^ The ship is enveloped in fog. ' ' 
 
56 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Envious Of, Of . . . For, Because Of, On Account Of. 
 
 Feeling envy; jealously pained by the excel- 
 lence or good fortune of another ; as : 
 My soul is envious of mine eye. — Keble, 
 
 **He was envious of his friend's wealth." 
 **He was envious of him for, on account of, 
 or because of his wealth.'' 
 
 Environ With. 
 
 Enclose, encompass ; as : 
 **The city was environed with a wall." 
 **The undertaking was environed with diffi- 
 culties. ' ' 
 
 Envy Of. 
 
 Malicious grudging ; an object of envy ; as: 
 * ' They did this in envy of Caesar. ' ' 
 The preacher of to-day should be the envy of 
 the ages. — Wortman, 
 
 Equal To, With. 
 
 Commensurate, adequate ; of the same degree 
 with each other, or another ; as : 
 
 Were my fortunes equal to my desires. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 **We are not equal to the undertaking." 
 
 ** Three angles of a triangle are equal to two 
 right angles." 
 
 With — Used in Scripture, rarely in modern 
 speech; as: 
 
 .... Making himself equal with God. — John 
 v:18. 
 
 Equivalent To. 
 
 Equal in value, force, meaning, etc. ; as : 
 ^'Circumstantial evidence may be almost 
 equivalent to full proof. ' ' 
 
'HOW TO USE IT 57 
 
 Error In, Of. 
 
 In, — A mistake, an inaccuracy ; as : 
 
 *^ There was an error in the total figures." 
 
 Of. — A wrong - doing ; a wrong mode of 
 thought; as: 
 
 ^^A sacrifice offered for the errors of the 
 people.'* 
 
 *^His going at that time was an error of 
 judgment. ' ' 
 Escape From (sometimes out of). 
 
 To succeed in getting away from; emerge 
 into freedom ; as : 
 
 Even Russians, when they die, escape from 
 their autocrat. — I). G. Ritchie. 
 
 '*The bird escaped out of the cage." 
 Espouse To. 
 
 To promise or give in marriage ; as : 
 
 * * He espoused his daughter to his friend. ' ' 
 Estimate Of. 
 
 A calculation not professedly exact ; as : 
 
 *^Give me an estimate of the cost." 
 Estimated At, By. 
 
 At. — ^Appraised; as: 
 
 *'The land is estimated at $50.00 a foot." 
 
 By. — Judged ; as : 
 
 John of Salisbury's acquaintance with Roman 
 literature can only be estimated by a careful 
 reading of the Polycraticus. — Stuhbs. 
 Estrange From. 
 
 To turn from attachment to enmity; with- 
 draw ; as : 
 
 I do not know . . . what it is that has 65- 
 tranged him from me. — Pope. 
 
 ^'1 have completely estranged myself from 
 society." 
 
58 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Example Of, For, To. , 
 
 Of, — A specimen ; as : 
 
 The Duomo of Fiesole is an example of the 
 work of the Tuscan architects of the eleventh 
 century. — Norton. 
 
 For, To. — A model of conduct or manners: 
 as: 
 
 ** Christ was an example for all men to fol- 
 low.'' 
 
 **A clergyman should be a wholesome exam- 
 ple to his flock." 
 
 Exasperated By. 
 
 Irritated to a high degree ; as : 
 **We were exasperated by the man's stubborn 
 silence. ' ' 
 
 Except To, From. 
 
 To. — To object ; as : 
 
 *^He excepted to the testimony of one of the 
 witnesses." 
 
 From. — Leave out of consideration ; as : 
 
 **A few were excepted from the general con- 
 demnation. ' ' 
 
 Exception To (sometimes Against), Of. 
 
 *'He took exception to my remarks." 
 Thou hast taken against me a most unjust 
 exception. — Shakespeare, 
 
 Of. — Exclusion; as: 
 
 *^A11 the members voted for the measure with 
 the exception of five." 
 
 Excess Of. 
 
 Undue quantity ; as : 
 
 I will dazzle Caesar with excess of glory. 
 
 — Fletcher. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 59 
 
 Exchange For, Of. 
 
 For, — That which is given or received in re- 
 turn for something ; as : 
 
 An Atheist's laugh's a poor exchange 
 
 For Deity offended. — Burns. 
 
 Of. — Mutual transfer ; as : 
 **The negotiations resulted in an exchange of 
 prisoners." 
 
 Exclude From. 
 
 Except; reject; as: 
 
 What is opposite to the eternal rules of rea- 
 son and good sense must be excluded from any- 
 place in the carriage of a well-bred man. 
 
 — Steele. 
 
 Exclusive Of. 
 
 Excluding from consideration ; as : 
 
 ** There were five thousand troops, exclusive 
 of artillery." 
 Exempt From. 
 
 Not subject to ; as : 
 
 The convent [of Mount Sinai] is exempt from 
 all jurisdiction. — Pococke. 
 Exhausted By. 
 
 Deprived of strength ; as: 
 
 *^The man was exhausted by disease and pri- 
 vation. ' ' 
 V Exonerate From. 
 
 Remove an imputation ; as : 
 
 *^He was exonerated from blame for the acci- 
 dent." 
 Except From, Of. 
 
 From. — Await something as likely to hap- 
 pen ; as : 
 
 ^^I shall expect a letter from you next week." 
 Of. — To reckon upon ; as : 
 
60 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 There is a pride of doing more than is ex- 
 pected of us. — Dryden. 
 
 Expectant Of. 
 Having expectation; as: 
 Expectant of that news which never came. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 
 (Or absolutely; as: Eosy years that stood 
 expectant, — Lowell. ) 
 
 Expel From, Out of. 
 
 To drive or force out ; as : 
 A united army . . . expelled the Austrians 
 from Bavaria. — Lecky, 
 
 Did ye not . . . expel me out of my father's 
 house ? — Judges xi, 7, 
 Expert In, At. 
 
 In. — Trained ; experienced ; as : 
 
 *'He was an expert in chess.'' 
 
 At. — Skilful ; dexterous ; as : 
 
 The skeptic is ever expert at a puzzling de- 
 bate. — Goldsmith. 
 Expose To, For. 
 
 To. — ^To lay open to any influence or action; 
 to show openly ; as : 
 
 Strong minds are often . . . exposed to 
 doubt and uncertainty. — Crawford. 
 
 ' ' The pictures were exposed to the public. ' ' 
 For. — Exhibit, as for sale ; as : 
 **The goods were exposed for sale." 
 
 Expostulate With, On, Upon. 
 
 With. — Eeason earnestly with a person; as: 
 Men expostulate with erring friends. — Jowett. 
 
 On, Upon. — To argue against something done 
 or intended ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 61 
 
 **He expostulated on the advisability of my 
 going.'' 
 
 He . . . expostulated upon my obstinacy. 
 
 —Goldsmith. 
 
 Expressive Of. 
 
 Serving to express ; as : 
 Each verse so swells expressive of her woes. 
 
 —Tickell. 
 
 Exult Over, In, At. 
 
 Over. — Rejoice as in triumph ; as : 
 ' ^ He exults in his great strength. ' ' 
 *^The nation exulted at the news of the suc- 
 cess of the army. ' ' 
 
 Fail Of, In. 
 
 Of. — To come short; as: 
 
 ^^The experiment failed of success." 
 
 In. — Prove lacking ; as : 
 
 ^ * He fails in his duty. ' ' 
 Fall Under, Into, On, Upon, From, To. 
 
 Under. — Come under ; as : 
 
 *^The subject falls under this head.'' 
 
 Into. — To empty; drop; descend from a 
 higher to a lower grade ; as : 
 
 *^The Rhone falls into the Mediterranean." 
 
 * * The child fell into the water. ' ' 
 
 **He fell into bad company." 
 
 On. — Assault ; as : 
 
 I saw three bandits by the rock, 
 Waiting to fall on you . . . — Tennyson. 
 
 Upon. — Descend upon; as : 
 
 Fear and dread shall fall upon them. 
 
 — Ex. XV, 16. 
 
 From, To. — Descend from a higher to a lower 
 place ; as : 
 
 **The nut fell from the tree to the ground." 
 
 Familiar With, To. 
 
62 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 With, — Thoroughly versed ; as : 
 
 **He is familiar with the Scriptures." 
 
 To. — Well known, as from frequent use ; as : 
 
 * * That story is familiar to me. ' ' 
 
 Famous For. 
 Distinguished in story or common report ; as : 
 I have always heard that Holland House is 
 
 famous for its good cheer. — Macaulay, 
 
 Favor Of, With. 
 
 0/. — Favoring; as: 
 
 It is not too much to say . . . the English 
 people were in favor of the Stuarts. — McCarthy. 
 
 With. — Being favored ; as : 
 
 *^He was in favor with the administration.'' 
 
 With, V. — Accommodate ; as : 
 
 He begged to be favored with a song. 
 
 — Goldsmith. 
 Favorable To, For. 
 
 To. — Tending to promote ; as : 
 A poetical religion must, it seems, be favor- 
 able to art. — Gladstone. 
 
 For. — Advantageous ; as : 
 
 '*The weather is favorable for planting.'' 
 
 Favorite Of. 
 
 A person or thing looked upon with special 
 favor ; as : 
 
 The favorite of the prince is rarely the favor- 
 ite of the people. — Prescott. 
 
 Fawn On, Upon. 
 Use blandishments ; as : 
 Prone as we are to fawn upon ourselves. 
 
 — Hooker. 
 
 Courtiers who fawn on a master while they 
 betray him. — Macaulay. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 63 
 
 (Also absolutely; as: He fawned, bullied, 
 and bribed indefatigably. — Macaulay.) 
 
 Feed On, Upon. 
 
 Use something for sustenance; rest for 
 strength or comfort ; as : 
 
 * * The robin feeds on worms. ' ' 
 To feed on hope. — Spenser. 
 
 Upon the earth's increase why shouldst thou 
 feed? — Shakespeare, 
 
 Fight With, Against, For. 
 
 With. — To contend with in person for mas- 
 tery; as: 
 
 To fight with thee no man of arms will deign. 
 
 — Milton. 
 Against. — Contend; as: 
 You do fight against your country's foes. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 For. — Strive vigorously ; as: 
 
 Let him fight for his own. — Emerson. 
 
 Fill With. 
 
 Occupy the wljole capacity ; pervade ; as : 
 *^The glass was filled with water." 
 The earth was filled with violence. 
 
 - —Gen. xi, 2. 
 Followed By. 
 
 Move behind in the same direction ; come after 
 as a consequence ; as : 
 
 *^The man was followed by his dog." 
 The investigation of principles is quickly fol- 
 lowed by practical inventions. — Draper. 
 
 Fond Of. 
 
 Feeling affection or pleasure ; having a strong 
 liking ; as : 
 
 A man will hardly boast that he is very fond 
 
64 THE CORRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 of eating ; but lie has no hesitation in acknowl- 
 edging that he is very fond of music. — Lechy, 
 
 Fondness For. 
 
 Tender liking ; strong appetite ; as: 
 
 My heart has still some foolish fondness for 
 
 thee. — Addison, 
 
 *^He had a fondness for truffles." 
 
 Forbear From. 
 
 To refrain from; as : 
 *^ Forbear from evil." 
 
 Foreign To (sometimes From). 
 
 Irrelevant ; not to the purpose ; as : 
 
 **The sentiments you express are foreign to 
 
 your heart. ' * 
 
 **This design is foreign from my thoughts." 
 
 Form of, From. 
 
 Of, — Make of given material ; as : 
 *'The statue is formed of bronze." 
 From, — Derive or produce from existing ma- 
 terials or elements ; as : 
 
 ^^A verbal is a word that is formed from a 
 
 verb." 
 
 Foimd On, Upon. 
 To base one's opinion; rely; as: 
 *^I found upon the evidence of my senses." 
 It [theology] founds thus necessarily on faith 
 
 equally with religion. — Princeton Rev, 
 
 Founded On, Upon, In. 
 On, Upon, — Established on a basis ; as : 
 *^The house was founded on or upon a rock." 
 In, — Used abstractly ; as : 
 **The law was founded in truth and equity." 
 
 Free From, With, Of. 
 From, — Clear or exempt; having immunity; 
 
 as: 
 
HOW TO USE IT 65 
 
 The side corridors are generally free from 
 figure — sculpture. — Ferguson, 
 
 ^'She is seldom free from pain.'' . 
 
 With, — Open-handed; as: 
 
 ^^He was free with his money." 
 
 Of, — Having a right to the freedom of; as : 
 
 He therefore makes all birds, of every sect, 
 
 Free of his farm. — Dryden, 
 
 Free, From, Of. 
 
 To rid ; clear ; as : 
 
 Our land is from the rage of tigers frqed. 
 
 — Dryden, 
 
 *^We are now freed of those inconveniences." 
 
 Friend Of, To, With. 
 
 Of, To,-r-To favor or promote a cause; as: 
 Statesman, yet friend to Truth! of soul sin- 
 cere. — Pope. 
 
 He was no friend of idle ceremonies. 
 
 — Prescott. 
 
 With, — Reciprocal friendship ; as : 
 I shall never be friends again with roses. 
 
 — Swinburne, 
 
 Friendly To, With. 
 
 To, — Favoring ; as : 
 
 *^He is friendly to our project." 
 
 With, — Implying friendship ; as : 
 
 * ' The King was friendly with his barons. ' ' 
 
 Frightened At, By. 
 
 One is frightened by a cause of fear addressed 
 directly and suddenly to the senses ; as : 
 * ^ She was frightened at her own shadow. ' ' 
 **She was frightened by a dog." 
 
v/ 
 
 66 THE CORRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Frown On, Upon, At. 
 
 On, Upon. — To look or act disapprovingly; 
 lower ; as : 
 
 The sky doth frown and lower upon our army. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
 A small castle frowns on the hill. — Freeman. 
 
 At, — Scowl ; as : 
 
 ^^She frowned at me, but said nothing/' 
 Frugal Of. 
 
 Economical ; avoiding waste ; as : 
 
 No man . . . more frugal of . , . his time 
 and revenue. — Milton, 
 
 Fruitful In, Of. 
 
 In. — Producing abundant results ; as : 
 
 ^*Be ye, therefore, fruitful in good works.'' 
 
 Of. — Result in ; as : 
 
 ''Such a doctrine can be fruitful only of 
 crime." 
 
 Full Of. 
 
 Filled by or engrossed with something ; as : 
 ''Life is full of perplexities." 
 ' ' She is full of her own conceits. ' ' 
 
 Furnish With. 
 
 To provide; supply; as: 
 
 He is furnished with my opinion. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
 Gasp For, After. 
 
 To strain or long for ; as : 
 
 The Castilian, seeing how they . .^ . gasped 
 after liberty, demanded a most exorbitant price 
 for their ransom. — Spectator, 
 
 ' ' He gasped for breath. ' ' 
 
 Give To, Into, Unto. 
 
 To devote; addict; to hand over to another 
 as a price ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 67 
 
 '*He was much given to idleness/' 
 **The letter was given into our keeping, '* 
 I will give him unto the Lord all the days of 
 
 his life. — 1 Sam,, i, 11, 
 
 The value . . . must be given to the foreign 
 
 country in exchange for it. — Mill. 
 
 Glad Of, At. 
 
 Pleased ; satisfied ; as : 
 
 ^*I shall be glad of an opportunity to see 
 you.'' 
 
 *^He was glad at the report of your success.'' 
 
 Glance At, Over, Upon. 
 
 At, — To make an incidental or passing reflec- 
 tion ; as : 
 
 He glanced at a certain reverend doctor. 
 
 — Sivift. 
 
 Over, — Give a quick passing look ; as : 
 
 His flashing eye glanced over a body of war- 
 riors. — Cooper, 
 
 Upon, — A sudden look ; as : 
 
 I perceived that they cast hostile glances 
 upon each other. — Addison, 
 
 Gloat Over, Upon. 
 
 Exhibit evil pleasure ; as : 
 **He gloated over his helpless victim." 
 Your snarling critic gloats upon defects. 
 
 —W, W, Story, 
 
 Glow With. 
 
 To exhibit a strong, bright color; shine viv- 
 idly ; be animated with strong emotion ; as : 
 Clad in a gown that glows with Tyrian rays. 
 
 — Dry den. 
 And gloiv with shame of your proceedings. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 And with a general's love of conquest glows, 
 
 — Addison. 
 
68 THE COERECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Good For, At, To. 
 
 For. — Qualified ; fit ; as : 
 
 All quality that is good for anything is 
 founded originally in merit. — Collier. 
 
 At. — Dexterous ; as : 
 
 You were ever good at sudden commenda- 
 tions. — Shakespeare. 
 
 To. — Kind, friendly; as: 
 
 *VThe men were very good to us.'' 
 
 Graduate At, In, Into, To. 
 At, In. — To confer a degree upon at the close 
 
 of a course of study ; as : 
 
 *^He was graduated at Harvard in the class 
 
 of 1850.'' 
 Into. — To change by degrees ; as : 
 *^The dawn graduated into day." 
 To. — Modify by degrees ; temper ; as : 
 The Alhambra possesses retreats graduated 
 
 to the heat of the weather. — Irving. 
 
 Graft On, Upon, In, Into. 
 
 To insert into a tree or plant; insert into or 
 incorporate with something else ; fix upon some- 
 thing as a basis ; bring about a close union ; as : 
 
 Plants, to succeed when grafted upon each 
 other, must be in some way related. 
 
 — A. A. Crozier. 
 
 And graft my love immortal on thy fame. — 
 Pope. 
 
 No art-teaching could be of use to you . . . 
 unless it was grafted on something deeper than 
 art. — Ruskin. 
 
 Seeing . . . these persons are . . . grafted 
 inio the body of Christ's Church. 
 
 — Book of Common Prayer. 
 
HOW TO USE IT ^9 
 
 Graft in our hearts the love of thy Name. 
 
 —Ibid. 
 
 Grapple With, To. 
 
 With, — Contend with in close contest ; attack 
 boldly; as: 
 
 Don Alonso . . . grappled closely with his 
 adversary. — Prescott. 
 
 An intellect strong enough to grapple with 
 any subject. — Whipple. 
 
 To. — Make fast ; as : 
 The friends thou hast, and their adoption tried, 
 Grapple them to thy soul with hoops of steel. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Grasp At. 
 
 Try to seize ; as : 
 
 ** Alexander grasped at universal empire." 
 Grate On, Upon. 
 
 To rub or scratch roughly; produce mental 
 irritation ; as : 
 
 ^*The saw grates on steel." 
 
 ^^His talk grated upon all present." 
 Grateful For, To. 
 
 To, For. — Having a due sense of benefits re- 
 ceived ; as : 
 
 *^He was grateful to his father for sending 
 him to college. ' ' 
 
 To. — Pleasing to the senses ; as : 
 
 **The view is grateful to the eye." 
 Greedy Of. 
 
 Having an eager desire for ; as : 
 
 Like as a lion that is greedy of his prey. 
 
 — Ps. xvii, 12. 
 Grieve At, For, About, Over. 
 
 At. — To be in pain of mind because of an 
 evil ; as : 
 Do not you grieve at this. — Shakespeare, 
 
70 THE COEKECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 For. — To feel grief; mourn; as: 
 *^She grieves for her child, and will not be 
 comforted.'' 
 Over, About, — To sorrow; as: 
 Grieving . . . over the unreturning brave* 
 
 — Byron. 
 
 **I am grieved about your going." 
 
 Ground In, On, Upon. 
 
 In. — Instruct thoroughly ; fix firmly ; as : 
 Let no youth leave the school without being 
 thoroughly grounded in the history of Ameri- 
 can liberty. — Depew. 
 
 Whatever is valuable in religion must be 
 grounded in conviction. — J. T. Peck. 
 
 On, Upon. — To run aground; settle firmly, 
 
 as on reason ; as : 
 
 * * The ship grounded on the bar. ' ' 
 
 Grounded upon no other argument. . . . 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 Guilty Of. 
 
 Having incurred guilt ; as : 
 Nor he, nor you, were guilty of the strife. 
 
 — Dry den. 
 Hanker After, For. 
 
 To have an uneasy craving; a vehement de- 
 sire ; as : 
 
 ^^He hankers after notoriety." 
 
 Our sailors have been living on fresh meat 
 till they hanker for the salt. — W. Colton. 
 
 Hang With, On, By, Upon. 
 
 With. — To decorate by anything suspended; 
 as: 
 
 The rooms [at Venice] are generally hung 
 with gilt leather. . . . — Addison. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 71 
 
 On, By. — Be dependent upon ; as : 
 
 ' ' His life hangs on the judge 's decision. ' ' 
 
 * ^ The sword hangs by a hair. ' ' 
 
 On, Upon. — Cling fondly to ; oppress ; as : 
 ^ ^ She hung upon his neck. * * 
 Yesterday ^s hunting hangs still upon me. 
 
 — 7. Walton. 
 Happen To, On, Upon. 
 
 To. — Take place ; as : 
 
 '^ Death happens to all men alike." 
 
 On, Upon. — Meet with; light upon; as: 
 
 * ^ I have happened on some other accounts. ' ' 
 Harass By, With. 
 
 By. — Annoy by repeated attacks ; as : 
 
 They had before been miserably harassed by 
 
 the inroads of the Philistines. — Stillingfleet. 
 With. — Distress by perplexity ; as : 
 Vext with lawyers and harassed ivith debts. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 
 Hatred Of, To. 
 
 Intense dislike; enmity; of one person to 
 another person or thing ; as : 
 
 It was the hatred of Catherine de Medici to 
 Coligny that led to the massacre of St. Barthol- 
 omew. — G. P. Fisher. 
 Heal Of. 
 
 To make whole or sound ; as : 
 
 I will heal thee of thy wounds. — Jer. xxx, 17. 
 Hinder From, By, In. 
 
 Keep from or delay ; as : 
 
 ^ ^ Bad weather will not hinder us from going. ' ' 
 
 **The ship was hindered in its progress by 
 adverse winds." 
 Hinges On, Upon. 
 
 Figuratively, that on which anything de- 
 pends ; as : 
 
72 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 **The story hinges on (or upon) the death of 
 the prince." 
 
 Hiss At. 
 
 To express contempt or disapprobation ; as : 
 The merchants among the people shall hiss at 
 
 thee. — Ezek. xxvii, 36, 
 
 Hit On, Upon. 
 
 To come upon, as by chance ; as : 
 
 None of them hit upon the art. — Addison, 
 
 I can never hit on his name. — Shakespeare, 
 Hold From, Of, Under, On, For, To, With. 
 
 From, Of, Under, — To have possession or de- 
 rive title ; as : 
 
 The Thanes who held of Godwin and Harold. 
 
 — Lingard. 
 
 His imagination holds immediately from na- 
 ture. — Hazlitt. 
 
 ''The property is held under a lease." 
 On, — To continue or proceed in ; as : 
 In spite of opposition, he held on his 
 
 a 
 
 For, — Keep back ; detain ; as : 
 
 ''The letter is held for postage." 
 
 To, — To adhere ; to cleave ; as : 
 
 He will hold to the one and despise the other. 
 
 — Matt, vi, 24, 
 With, — Take part with ; as : 
 I hold well with Plato. . . . — Sir T, Moore, 
 
 Hunger For, Of, After. 
 For, Of, — Any strong or eager desire ; as : 
 For hunger of my gold I die. — Dryden, 
 
 Excellence is lost sight of in the hunger for 
 sudden performance and praise. — Emerson, 
 
 After, — Long for ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 73 
 
 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst 
 after righteousness. — Matt, v, 6. 
 
 Identical With. 
 
 Of like nature ; as : 
 
 ^^This proposition is identical with the 
 other. ' ' 
 
 Ignorant Of. 
 
 Uninstructed or uninformed ; as : 
 Fools, alike ignorant of man and God. — 
 Browning. 
 
 Ill Of, With. 
 
 In a disordered state physically. 
 Century says, * ' 111 of a fever. ' ' 
 Standard says, ^^111 with fever.'' — (See sich,) 
 Illustrated With or By, By. 
 
 With, By. — To elucidate or adorn by means 
 of pictures, drawings, etc. ; as : 
 
 ^'The article was illustrated with or by maps 
 showing the position of the army.'' 
 
 By. — To make drawings intended to adorn 
 books, etc. ; as : 
 
 '*The book was illustrated by Gibson." 
 
 Imaged In. 
 
 Eeflect the likeness of ; as : 
 ' ^ The mountains were imaged in the peaceful 
 lake." 
 
 Imbue With. 
 
 I 
 
 Thoroughly pervade ; as: 
 A thoughtful mind, imbued with elegant liter- 
 ature. — Sumner. 
 
 Immerse In. 
 
 To plunge into anything, especially a fluid; 
 to engage deeply ; as : 
 
74 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 He . . . immersed in the flood, found . . . 
 death. — Cowper. 
 ^^He was immersed in study. '* 
 ^ Impatient Of, With, For, At, Under. 
 
 Of. — Intolerant; as: 
 
 Dryden was poor and impatient of poverty. 
 
 — Macaulay. 
 
 With, For, At, Under. — Uneasy, fretful, rest- 
 less ; as : 
 
 **You are too impatient with me." 
 *^The audience was impatient for the curtain 
 to rise." 
 * * They grew impatient at the long delay. ' ' 
 ^^The horse became impatient under the con- 
 stant chafing of his harness." 
 Impenetrable To, By. 
 » To. — Incapable of being penetrated ; as : 
 
 Highest woods impenetrable. 
 To star or sunlight.^ — Milton. 
 
 By. — Unimpressihle ; as: 
 
 They will be . . . impenetrable by a sermon 
 
 of the gospel. — Jer. Taylor. 
 
 Impervious To. 
 Not to be entered or passed through ; as : 
 ** Glass is impervious to water/' 
 Leafy lanes . . . impervious to shower or 
 
 sunbeam. — Barham. 
 
 Implant In. 
 
 Form a vital union ; as : 
 Nature has implanted fear in all living crea- 
 tures. — Bacon. 
 
 Impose On, Upon. 
 On. — To lay as a burden ; to inflict ; as : 
 Each man . . . would impose his ideas on 
 
 others. — Emerson. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 75 
 
 Upon, — Act with delusive effect ; as : 
 
 Do we hope to impose upon God, ... by a 
 
 mere form of godliness, without the power of 
 
 it? — Bp, Atterbury. 
 
 {/ Impress On, Upon, With, By. 
 
 On, Upon. — Make an impression upon; im- 
 print ; stamp deeply on the mind ; as : 
 He did impress 
 On the green moss his tremulous step. 
 
 — Shelley, 
 
 There is impressed upon all things a triple 
 desire or appetite proceeding from love to them- 
 selves — Bacon, 
 
 With. — That which is impressed ; as : 
 His heart, like an agate, with your print im- 
 pressed. — Shakespeare, 
 
 By, — Produce a mental effect upon ; as : 
 **I was favorably impressed by the stranger's 
 appearance. ' ' 
 
 Imprint In, On or Upon. 
 
 In, — To impress permanently on the heart or 
 mind ; as : 
 
 The inclination to goodness is imprinted 
 deeply in the nature of man. — Bacon, 
 
 On or Upon, — To impress by printing or 
 stamping, to impress, as on the mind ; as : 
 * * The design is first imprinted on wax. ' ' 
 Nature imprints upon whate'er we see. 
 That has a heart and life in it, * ' Be free. ' ' 
 
 — Cowper. 
 Improve On, Upon. 
 
 To bring nearer to perfection; a's: 
 '*A new patent generally improves on the 
 old one." 
 
76 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 The son has regularly improved upon the 
 yiees of the father. — Junius. 
 
 Impute To. 
 
 To charge ; attribute ; as : 
 One vice of a darker shade was imputed to 
 him — envy. — Macaulay, 
 
 Inaccessible To. 
 
 Not to be reached or approached ; as : 
 She built her nest on a high rock inaccessible 
 to man. 
 
 Incapable Of. 
 
 Lacking sufficient capacity; unqualified; not 
 susceptible; as: 
 
 * ' That bottle is incapable of holding the quan- 
 tity required. ' ' 
 
 *^He is incapable of understanding the sub- 
 ject." 
 
 ^^His lot is incapable of amelioration." 
 
 Also often used elliptically ; as: 
 
 Is not your father grown incapable of (man- 
 aging) reasonable affairs? — Shakespeare, 
 Incapacitate From, For, By. 
 
 To disqualify ; to render unfit ; as : 
 
 ^'In old Scottish law a butcher was incapaci- 
 tated by his profession from sitting on a jury." 
 
 Concentrated attention, unbroken by rest, so 
 prostrates the brain as to incapacitate it for 
 thinking. — H. Spencer. 
 
 Imcensed With, Against. 
 
 To inflame with anger ; as : 
 **I am incensed with him for neglecting this 
 important matter. ' ' 
 
 The people are incensed against him. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 77 
 
 Incentive To. 
 
 Inciting; encouraging; as: 
 Every great life is an incentive to all other 
 lives. — Curtis, 
 
 Incident To. 
 
 Likely to befall; naturally appertaining; as: 
 All chance incident to man's frail life. 
 
 — Milton. 
 The studies incident to his profession. 
 
 — Milward, 
 Inclination For, To, Toward, Of. 
 
 A mental bent or tendency ; as : 
 
 '^He has an inclination for (or toivard) the 
 stage. ' ' 
 
 A mere inclination to a thing is not properly 
 a willing of that thing. — South. 
 
 How dost thou find the inclination of the peo- 
 ple ? — Shakespeare. 
 
 Include In. 
 
 Contain; comprise; as: 
 ** A pearl is included in a shell." 
 *'He was included in the invitation to the 
 family. ' ' 
 
 Incoherence Of. 
 
 Looseness ; separateness of parts ; as : 
 The smallness and incoherence of the parts 
 do make them easy to be put in motion. — Boyle, 
 
 Incompatible With. 
 
 Incapable of harmonizing or agreeing with; 
 as: 
 
 The critical faculty is not of itself incompati- 
 He with imaginative and creative power. 
 
 — Stedman, 
 
78 THE COEKECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Incongruous With. 
 
 Out of place or character ; as : 
 
 * * The illustrations were incongruous with the 
 theme. ' ' 
 Inconsiderate Of. 
 
 Inattentive; negligent; as: 
 
 He cannot be inconsiderate of our 
 
 frailties.— Deca^ of Christian Piety. 
 
 Inconsistent With. 
 
 Discordant; at variance; as: 
 
 Wisdom and virtue are far from being incon- 
 sistent with politeness and good humor. 
 
 — Addison. 
 Inconvenience, n. Of. 
 
 Want of convenience ; inexpediency ; as : 
 
 They plead against the inconvenience of 
 
 ceremonies in burial. — Hooker. 
 Inconvenience, v. By. 
 
 To put to inconvenience; as: 
 
 The missionaries were inconven^ 
 
 ienced hy finding that the only native word they 
 could use foi orod also meant devil. — Hale. 
 
 Incorporate In, Into, With. 
 
 In, Into. — To unite intimately; to assimilate; 
 as: 
 
 The Eomans did not subdue a country 
 
 but to incorporate them into their own com- 
 munity. — Addison. 
 
 The Haus-Town, being a Body-politic incor- 
 porated in the Empire, complained hereof to 
 the Emperor. — Howell. 
 
 With. — To unite with another body so as to 
 make part of it ; as : 
 
 Painters' colors and ashes do better incor- 
 porate with oil. — Paeon, 
 
HOW TO USE IT 79 
 
 Incrust With. 
 
 Overlay; as: 
 
 ^^It proved to be an ancient coin incrusted 
 with rust.'' 
 
 Inculcate On, Upon. 
 
 To impress by frequent admonition^; to urge 
 on the mind ; as : 
 
 '* Christ inculcates on his followers humility.'' 
 The most obvious and necessary duties of 
 life they have not yet had authority enough to 
 enforce and inculcate upon men's minds. 
 
 — S. Clarke. 
 
 Incumbent On, Upon. 
 
 Obligatory; as: 
 
 All men, truly zealous, will perform those 
 good works that are incumbent on all Chris- 
 tians. — Sprat, 
 
 It appeared a duty incumbent upon me 
 
 to attempt to reclaim them. — Goldsmith, 
 Incursion Into. 
 
 An inroad or invasion ; as : 
 ^ The Moorish cavaliers, whose greatest de- 
 light was a tala, or predatory incursion into 
 the Christian territories. — Irving, 
 Indemnify Against, For. 
 
 Against, — To secure against damage ; as : 
 
 ''The merchants were indemnified against 
 any damage to their stock." 
 
 For, — To make good to ; as : 
 
 Its enterprising navy indemnified the nation 
 
 for the scantiness of its territory at home. 
 
 — Prescott, 
 Independent Of. 
 
 Separate or disconnected; not relying upon; 
 
 as: 
 
 *'The soul may exist independent of matter." 
 
80 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 The town of St. Gaul is a Protestant republic 
 independent of the abbot. — Addison. 
 
 Indicative Of. 
 
 Giving intimation or knowledge of something ; 
 as: 
 ** Politeness is indicative of good breeding.*' 
 
 Indifferent To. 
 
 Unconcerned; as: 
 
 **He was indifferent to the welfare of his 
 family." 
 
 Indispensable To. 
 
 Absolutely requisite or necessary ; as : 
 
 Inequality of condition is indispensable 
 
 to progress. — Calhoun. 
 
 Indulge In, With. 
 
 In. — To yield to the gratification of a desire 
 without restraint ; to give oneself up to ; as : 
 '*He indulged himself in idleness." 
 With. — To yield to a desire ; as : 
 '^He indulged himself with a new book." 
 
 Indulgent To, Of. 
 
 Indisposed to be severe ; lenient ; as : 
 ' ' She was indulgent to her servants. ' ' 
 The feeble old, indulgent of their ease. 
 
 — Dry den. 
 Inequality In, Of. 
 
 Want of equality in things of the same kind ; 
 as: 
 
 Though human souls are said to be equal, yet 
 there is no small inequality in their operations. 
 
 — Sir T. Browne. 
 
 Inequality of condition is indispensable 
 
 to progress. — Calhoun, 
 
HOW TO USE IT 31 
 
 Infect With. 
 
 To commtLQicate to or affect with ; as : 
 Goethe was not infected with the common- 
 place selfishness and frivolity of Court life. 
 
 — Hutton. 
 
 Infer Prom. 
 
 Accept from evidence or premises ; as : 
 
 *^I inferred from his silence that he would 
 offer no objections. ' ' 
 Inferior To. 
 
 Less important or valuable ; as : 
 
 Whether they are equal or inferior to my 
 other poems, an author is the most improper 
 judge. — Dryden. 
 Infest With. 
 
 To trouble greatly by numbers or by fre- 
 quency of presence ; as : 
 
 The house is infested with rats. 
 
 ^^The Black Sea was at that time infested 
 with pirates." 
 
 Inflame With, By. 
 
 W^i^' — To stimulate or rouse to unnatural 
 action ; to light up ; as : 
 
 Fierce Phlegethon 
 
 Whose waves of torrent fire inflame with 
 rage. — Milton. 
 
 ^^The trees were inflamed with autumn 
 colors." 
 
 By. — That which causes something to be in- 
 flamed; as: 
 
 ' ' The skin is inflamed by an eruption. ' ' 
 Inflict On. 
 
 Lay on as something that must be borne ; as : 
 
 So ended the year 1744, during which a fear- 
 ful sum of human misery had been inflicted on 
 the world. — Lechy. 
 
82 THE CORRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Influence (Verb) To, By. (Noun) On, Of, Over, With. 
 
 To, By, — To affect or sway ; as : 
 
 **He was influenced to leave the country hy a 
 friend who lived in the city. 
 
 On, Of, Over, With, — Controlling power 
 quietly exerted ; as : 
 
 Foreknowledge had no influence on their 
 fdixxlt— Milton, 
 
 It was not without the influence of a Divinity 
 
 that refused to be called Lord. 
 
 — Jer. Taylor, 
 
 '* Astrologers claim that stars have an influ- 
 ence over affairs.'' 
 Have you any influence with him? 
 
 Inform Against, On, Of. 
 
 Against, On, — To give intelligence or infor- 
 mation; to tell; as: 
 
 Ay, my good lord, 'twas he informed against 
 him. — Shakespeare, 
 
 ' ' If you absent yourself, I shall be obliged to 
 inform on you." 
 
 Of. — To communicate knowledge to ; as : 
 
 **I was informed of the affair." 
 
 Infringe On, Upon. 
 
 To encroach; trespass; as: 
 The sides of the front are dilated, infringing 
 on the eyes. — Horn, 
 
 **By so doing you infringe upon my rights." 
 
 Infuse Into, With, In. 
 
 Into, — Instil; as: 
 
 It is tropically observed by honest old Socra- 
 tes that heaven infuses into some men at their 
 birth a portion of intellectual gold. — Irving, 
 
 With, — To affect or modify ; inspire ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 83 
 
 Drink infused with flesh will nourish faster 
 and easier than drink and meat together. 
 
 — Bacon. 
 
 Infuse his breast ivith magnanimity. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
 In, — To steep ; as : 
 
 One ounce of dried leaves is infused in ten 
 ounces of water. — Coxe. 
 Ingraft, Engraft In, Into, On, Upon. 
 
 To set or implant deeply; to insert or graft 
 for propagation ; as : 
 
 Faith ingrafts us into Christ. — Jer. Taylor, 
 
 This fellow would ingraft a foreign name 
 upon our stock. — Dryden, 
 
 We have a natural thirst after knowledge in- 
 grafted in us. — Hooker, 
 
 The dialogue was ingrafted on the chorus, 
 
 and naturally partook of its character. 
 
 — Macaulay. 
 Inherent In. 
 
 Existing as an element, quality, or attribute ; 
 as: 
 
 There was inherent in them [the bishops] a 
 power of cognition of causes and coercion of 
 persons. — Jer. Taylor. 
 
 Initiate Into. 
 
 To introduce by preliminary instruction or 
 forms; as: 
 
 The bookseller initiated Leonard into 
 
 many of the mysteries of the bibliographer. 
 
 — Bulwer. 
 
 Inquire Of, For, Sometimes After, About, Concerning, Into, 
 At. 
 
 O/.—The person or subject questioned; as: 
 '*I inquired of all that were present." 
 
84 THE COERECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 For (sometimes after), — A person or thing 
 that is sought; as: 
 
 ^^Did you inquire for or after the package 
 that was lost r' 
 
 Inquire in the house of Judas for one called 
 Saul or Tarsus. — Acts ix, ii. 
 
 About or Concerning. — The subject of in- 
 quiry; as: 
 
 **Your friend inquired about or concerning 
 your welfare.'' 
 
 Into. — Detailed examination ; as : 
 
 And inquire 
 Gladly into the ways of God with man. 
 
 —Milton. 
 
 At. — Place where information is sought; as: 
 '^ Inquire at the postoffice for a letter ad- 
 dressed to me. ' ' 
 
 Inroad In, Into, Of. 
 
 Incursion; forcible or insiduous encroach- 
 ment ; as : 
 
 The Hungarians made inroads into 
 
 Italy. — John Adams. 
 
 Make cruel inroads in my brain. — Cowper. 
 Of. — Trespass; as: 
 
 The freakish inroads of the sea on the North 
 Carolina coast outdo fancy. — Lathrop. 
 
 Inscrilie To, With, On. 
 
 To. — Address in a formal dedication ; as : 
 The volume was inscribed to Eosetti. 
 
 ' — Stedman. 
 With. — Mark with characters ; as : 
 At the entrance of the cemetery there were 
 
 fifteen wooden posts, each inscribed with the 
 
 name of a god. — Bird. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 85 
 
 On.— To imprint; to impress deeply on the 
 memory; as: 
 Inscribe a verse on this relenting stone. 
 
 — Pope, 
 
 Insensible To, Of. 
 
 To. — Not susceptible of emotion or passion; 
 as: 
 
 Nothing disturbs the tranquility of their 
 souls, equally insensible to disasters and to 
 prosperity. — Irving. 
 
 Of. — Unconcerned ; indifferent ; as : 
 
 *^He lives in retirement, insensible of what is 
 going on in the world. ^' 
 Inseparable From. 
 
 Not separable ; as : 
 
 The history of every language is inseparable 
 
 from that of the people by whom it is spoken. 
 
 — Mure. 
 Insert In, Into. 
 
 To put in ; as : 
 
 *^He had an advertisement inserted in all the 
 daily papers.*' 
 
 *^One piece of wood was inserted into the 
 other. ' ' 
 
 Insight Into. 
 
 Mental vision ; a deep inspection or view ; as : 
 Could ever a man of prodigious mathematical 
 
 genius convey to others any insight into his 
 
 methods ? — Emerson. 
 
 He had an insight into almost all the secrets 
 of state. — Jortin. 
 
 Insist On, Upon. 
 
 Persist in demanding; urge; dwell; demand; 
 as: 
 
 ^ * I insist upon your coming. ' ' 
 
86 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 If a farmer can make poetry at the plough- 
 tail, it must be because his nature insists on it. 
 
 — Hawthorne. 
 Inspection Of, Over. 
 
 Of. — Critical examination ; as : 
 
 An inspection of the books revealed many 
 false entries. 
 
 Over. — Overseeing; as: 
 
 By exercising a close inspection over the 
 work, he detected all errors. 
 
 Instinct With. 
 
 Infused or filled with some active principle; 
 as: 
 
 The clo,se buds 
 
 That lay along the bough, instinct with life, 
 
 — Bryant. 
 Intent On, Upon. 
 
 Having the mind bent or earnestly fixed upon 
 something, fixed with strained or earnest atten- 
 tion; as: 
 
 But this whole hour your eyes have been in- 
 tent on that veiled picture. — Tennyson. 
 
 '*His thoughts are intent upon his duty.'' 
 Intercede With, For. 
 
 With, — To make intercession ; as : 
 
 She promised to intercede earnestly 
 
 mth the King. — Baker. 
 
 For. — Plead for; as: 
 
 Dion, his brother, interceded for him, and his 
 life was saved. — Smiles, 
 
 Intercourse With, Of, Between. 
 
 With. — Frequent association; interchange of 
 ideas ; spiritual or mental communion ; as : 
 
 His intercourse ivith heaven and earth be- 
 comes part of his daily food. — Emerson. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 87 
 
 Between, — Communication between persons 
 or places ; as : 
 
 ^^Intercourse between the town and the coun- 
 try is facilitated by the trolley lines." 
 
 An intercourse gradually took place between 
 them and the newcomers. — Irving. 
 
 Of. — Eeciprocal exchange ; as : 
 This sweet intercourse 
 Of looks and smiles. — Milton. 
 Interfere With, In, Between. 
 
 To take part in the affairs of others; espe- 
 cially to prevent some action; to interpose; 
 clash ; as : 
 
 To interfere with party disputes. — Swift. 
 
 So far as the government interferes in pri- 
 vate concerns — Isaac L. Rice. 
 
 Nature is ever interfering with art. — Emer- 
 son. 
 
 **He interfered between the combatants and 
 ended the fray." 
 Intermeddle Synonym of Interfere. 
 
 The practice of Spain hath been to m- 
 
 termeddle with foreign states. — Bacon. 
 Intermediate, Between. 
 
 Situated between two extremes ; as : 
 
 These plants are beautifully intermediate be- 
 tween the oxlip and the primrose. — Darwin. 
 Interrupt By. 
 
 Break the course of continuity of ; as : 
 
 **The smoothness of the road was not inter- 
 rupted by a single rut." 
 Intersperse Among, With, In. 
 
 Among. — Distribute scatteringly ; as: 
 
 ^^The shrubs were interspersed among the 
 trees." 
 
88 THE COKRECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 With, — Diversify by scattering objects upon; 
 as: 
 
 Which space is interspersed with small islands 
 and rocks. — Cook. 
 
 In. — To insert at intervals ; as : 
 There, interspersed in lawns and opening 
 
 glades, 
 Thin trees arise that shun each other's shades. 
 
 — Pope. 
 Intervene Between. 
 
 To come between ; as : 
 
 Six hundred yards intervened between them. 
 — Harrison. 
 Interweave With. 
 
 Weave together into a single fabric ; blend in- 
 timately ; as : 
 
 An old-fashioned ball dress made of lace in- 
 terwoven with silver threads. — Harper's Maga- 
 zine. 
 
 He intervenes truth with probable fic- 
 tion. — Dryden. 
 Intimate With. 
 
 On very familiar terms ; as : 
 
 And my understanding had been for too 
 many years intimate with severe thinkers. 
 
 — Be Quincey. 
 Intolerant Of. 
 
 Unable or indisposed to tolerate, or endure; 
 as: 
 
 The powers of human bodies being limited 
 and intolerant of excesses. — Arbuthnot. 
 
 Jesus was intolerant of sin. — Storr. 
 
 Intoxicate With, By. 
 
 With.— Elate ; as : 
 
 Intoxicated with the sound of those very 
 bells.— (^. Eliot. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 39 
 
 By. — That which elates ; as : 
 They were not intoxicated by military suc- 
 cess. — Jowett, 
 
 Introduce In, Into, With, To. 
 In. — Bring to notice in some place ; as : 
 **A resolution was introduced in congress." 
 Into. — Usher in ; insert ; as : 
 *^She was introduced into society." 
 ^^The doctor introduced a probe into the 
 wound. ' ' 
 
 With. — To present; as: 
 
 **He introduced the subject with a long pref- 
 ace." 
 
 To. — To cause to become acquainted; as: 
 ' ' I was introduced to an elderly gentleman. ' ' 
 
 Intrude Into, On, Upon. 
 
 Into. — To come in without leave ; as : 
 **He intruded himself into the conference." 
 On, Upon. — Enter without necessity or war- 
 rant ; as : 
 
 Our phantasy would intrude a thousand fears 
 upon us. — Burton. 
 
 ''She desires to be alone; do not intrude on 
 her privacy. ' ' 
 Intrust, Entrust To, With. 
 
 To. — Commit in trust; confide; as: 
 
 I intrust my neck to the fidelity of my 
 
 own feet, rather than to those of my horse. 
 
 — Cotton. 
 
 With. — To invest, as with a trust; as: 
 
 In a republic, every citizen is intrusted 
 
 with the public safety — Story. 
 
 Inundate With. 
 
 Overspread ; fill inordinately ; as : 
 
 ''The country was inundated with bills of 
 credit." 
 
90 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 The whole system is inundated with the tides 
 of joy. — Emerson. 
 
 Inure To. 
 Habituate, accustom ; as : 
 Inured to hardship from his early youth. 
 
 — Dryden, 
 
 Intrans, — To take or have effect ; as : 
 **The land will inure to the tenant.'' 
 
 Invest With (some times In) In. 
 
 To clothe or endue ; as : 
 
 Beatrice was invested by his imagina- 
 tion with glorious and mysterious attributes. 
 
 — Macaulay, 
 
 Invest me in my motley. — Shakespeare, 
 
 In. — To make an investment ; as : 
 * ' He invested in lands. ' ' 
 
 Involve In. 
 
 Entangle; envelop; as: 
 
 Involved in other men's affairs, he went down 
 in their ruin. — Beecher. 
 
 The further history of this neglected planta- 
 tion is involved in gloomy uncertainty. 
 
 — Bancroft. 
 Irrespective Of. 
 
 Eegardless ; not taking into account ; as : 
 Irrespective of the form of government, fre- 
 quent wars germinate permanent military 
 forces. — H. Spencer. 
 Irritate By. 
 
 Aijnoy ; excite ill temper ; make petulant ; as : 
 ^^He was irritated by the children's prattle." 
 
 Issue From, Of, In. 
 
 From. — Proceed as from a source; pass or 
 flow out ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 91 
 
 '^ Water issues from a spring." 
 From it issued forced drops of blood. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
 In, — Eesult ; terminate ; as : 
 Her efforts to bring tears into her eyes is- 
 sued in an odd contraction of the face. 
 
 —G. Eliot. 
 
 Of (noun). — The whole quantity sent forth at 
 one time ; the act of sending out ; as : 
 
 The whole issue of the paper was distributed 
 in three hours. 
 
 History cannot name a man who has gained 
 enduring honor by causing the issue of paper 
 money. — Bancroft. 
 
 Jealous For, Of. 
 
 For. — Full of zeal ; solicitous ; as : 
 **I have been very zealous for the Lord God 
 of hosts. ' ' — I Ki. xrx, 10. 
 
 Of. — Suspicious or resentful of successful 
 rivalry; as: 
 
 '*If the spirit of jealously come upon him, 
 and he be jealous of his wife. ' ' — Num. v, 14. 
 
 Jeer At. 
 
 Scoff at, as : 
 
 * * The crowd jeered at the speaker. ' ' 
 
 Join To, With, In. 
 
 To, With. — To unite, as one thing to or with 
 another ; as : 
 
 * ^ The house is joined to the church. ' ' 
 
 ** Pluto with Cato thou for this shalt join." 
 
 — Pope. 
 
 (To usually applies to things, with, to per- 
 sons.) 
 
92 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 In, — Be associated with in a common cause; 
 as: 
 
 ^'All those present joined in singing a hynm.'' 
 
 Judge Of. 
 
 Estimate the value of; form an opinion of; 
 as: 
 
 They are employed to judge of commodities. 
 
 — H. Spencer. 
 
 She is wise if I can judge of her. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Juxtaposition to With. 
 
 Contiguity; placed side by side; as: 
 Putting the case of English style into close 
 
 juxtaposition with the style of the French and 
 
 Germans. — De Quincey. 
 
 Knowledge Of. 
 
 Acquaintance with any fact or person ; as : 
 ^^She has very little knowledge of history.'^ 
 *^I have no knoivledge of the man.'' 
 
 KUl, With, By, For. 
 
 Deprive of life ; as : 
 
 Ah, kill me with thy weapon, not with words. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 **He was killed by a robber for his money." 
 
 Kind To, Unto, (N.) Of. 
 
 To, Unto. — Considerate; benignant; as: 
 
 The elements be kind to thee. — Shakespeare. 
 
 He is kind unto the unthankful and to the 
 evil. — Luke, vi._, 35. 
 
 Of (noun). — Class; sort; as: 
 ^'What kind of man is he?" 
 
HOW TO USE IT 93 
 
 Knack At. 
 
 Habitual facility of performance ; as : 
 No person ever had a better knack at hoping 
 than I. — Goldsmith, 
 
 Knock At, On. 
 
 To strike a blow as on a door or gate ; as : 
 
 When death knocked at any door in the ham- 
 let, there was an echo from every fireside. 
 
 — Lowell, 
 
 ^^ There is a knock at the door/' 
 
 ^^He knocked on the door.*' 
 
 Know Of, Al30ut, Under, By. 
 
 Ofy About. — Possess knowledge of; as: 
 Sir John must not know of it. — Shakespeare, 
 ''1 knew about his coming.'' 
 Under, By. — To designate ; as : 
 **He is known under or by the name of Col- 
 lins." 
 
 Labor Under. 
 
 To be burdened ; as : 
 
 The vulgar labor under a high degree of su- 
 perstition. — Bacon, 
 
 Land At, In. 
 
 At, — To arrive ; as : 
 
 Landing at Syracuse, we tarried there three 
 days. — Acts xxiii, 12. 
 
 In. — Come to a stop ; as : 
 
 **The wagon landed in a ditch." 
 
 Lapse Into, To (Verb), Of, To (Noun). 
 
 Into. — To fall; pass by degrees; as: 
 
 A tendency to lapse into the barbarity of those 
 
 northern nations from whom we are descended. 
 
 — Swift. 
 To. — Become ineffectual or void ; as : 
 If the Archbishop shall not fill it up within 
 
 six months it lapses to the king. — Ayliffe, 
 
94 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 To, Of, — A gliding or gradual failing; as: 
 The lapse to indolence is soft and impercep- 
 tible. — Rambler, 
 
 Bacon was content to wait the lapse of long 
 centuries for his expected revenue of fame. 
 
 — Taylor. 
 
 Latitude In, Of. 
 
 Laxity ; range or scope ; as : 
 
 A considerable latitude must be allowed in 
 the discussion of public affairs. — Junius, 
 
 Hester Prynne had habituated herself 
 
 to such latitude of speculation as was alto- 
 gether foreign to the clergymen. — Hawthorne, 
 
 Laugh At. 
 
 To scoff playfully ; deride ; as : 
 
 Strauss laughs at Paulus, Baur at Strauss, 
 Renan at Baur, and the hour-glass at all. 
 
 — Joseph Cook, 
 Lean On, Upon, Over,, Against, To, Toward. 
 
 On, Upon. — To depend, as for support or 
 comfort; as: 
 
 Everything good in man leans on what is 
 higher. — Emerson, 
 
 See, how she leans her cheek upon her hand. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Over, Against, To, Toward, — To deviate from 
 a straight line ; as : 
 The old trees o'er it lean, — Whittier, 
 
 ' * The tower leans to or toward the north. ' ' 
 
 *'He leaned against the wall. 
 
 To, Toward, — Incline, as in opinion ; tend, as 
 in conduct ; as : 
 
 '*He leans toward fatalism." 
 
 They delight rather to lean to their old cus- 
 toms. — Spencer, 
 
HOW TO USE IT 95 
 
 Learned (P. A.) In. 
 
 Well acquainted ; skilful ; as : 
 Not learned, save in gracious household ways. 
 
 — Tennyson, 
 
 Level (A.) With, Sometimes To. (V.) With, To, At, (N.) Of. 
 
 With, To, — Even with anything else; on the 
 same plane ; of equal importance ; as : 
 
 The water was now level with the terrace. 
 
 — Mrs. Oliphant. 
 
 Young boys and girls are level now with men. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Every thing lies level to our wish. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 With. — To lower; overthrow; as: 
 And their proud structures level with the 
 ground. — Sandys, 
 
 To, — Adjust ; as : 
 
 To which he levels all his purposes. — Spenser, 
 At, — To aim; as: 
 
 The foeman may with as great aim level at 
 the edge of a penknife. — Shakespeare. 
 
 Of. — A surface approximately horizontal ; fig- 
 uratively, a degree of moral, social, or intel- 
 lectual rank ; as : 
 
 **This place is eighteen hundred feet above 
 the level of the sea." 
 
 He felt that the teacher ought to be 
 
 constantly above the level of his scholars. 
 
 — Stanley, 
 Liable To, For. 
 
 To. — Exposed, as to danger, penalty; con- 
 tingently subject; as: 
 Proudly secure yet liable to fall. — Milton, 
 
96 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 For, — Bound or obliged in law or equity ; as : 
 **Tlie surety is liahle for the debt of his prin- 
 cipal." 
 
 Liberal, With, Of, To, In. 
 
 With, Of.-— The thing bestowed ; as : 
 
 Infinitely good, and of his good 
 
 As liberal and free as infinite. — Milton, 
 
 **He was liberal ivith his money." 
 To. — The recipient ; as : 
 
 Nature had been liberal of personal 
 
 beauty to her. — Goldsmith. 
 
 In. — (Before a word expressing action.) 
 **Free from narrowness in ideas he was liberal 
 in giving to the poor." 
 
 ^^He was liberal in his interpretation of my 
 art." 
 light On, Upom. 
 
 Descend; drop; to happen or stumble as by 
 chance; as: 
 Why must all your suspicions light upon me? 
 
 —Gay. 
 ''He lit on his feet." 
 On the tree-tops a crested peacock lit. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 
 '* Sometimes we light upon unpleasant 
 truths." 
 
 Liken To. 
 
 Compare as like ; as : 
 
 The preaching of the Gospel may be likened 
 to the scattering of sparks. — French. 
 
 Link With. 
 
 To be or become connected ; as : 
 No one generation could link with the other. 
 
 — Burke. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 97 
 
 Listen To, For. 
 
 To. — What we actually hear; as: 
 ^^He listened to the sound of revelry within." 
 For. — What we expect or desire to hear; as: 
 **He listened in vain for the sound of her 
 
 footstep. ' ' 
 
 Live, At, In, On, Upon, With, Among, By. 
 
 At, In, On. — Reside; as: 
 ' ' He lies at Yonkers. ' ' {At is used of a small 
 place; in, of a large place.) 
 
 '*He lives in New York." , 
 
 ^*She lives on a plantation in Cuba." 
 On, Upon, By. — To subsist; procure a main- 
 tenance; as: 
 
 And humbly live on rabbits and on roots. 
 
 — Pope. 
 
 I speak the truth as I live hy bread. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 
 Those who live hy labor. — Sir W. Temple. 
 
 In. — To outlast danger ; to continue in opera- 
 tion as an active thing ; as : 
 
 ^^No ship could live in such a storm." 
 
 ^^The dead live in memory." 
 
 By. — In Scripture, to have spiritual life ; as : 
 
 The just shall live by faith. — Gal. iii, 11. 
 
 Among, With. — Abide; as: 
 
 **He lived among (or with) the savages for 
 twenty years." 
 
 Load With. 
 
 To lay a load or burden on ; to impose some- 
 thing upon, either good or bad ; as : 
 
 Am I loaded with care she takes off a good 
 share. — Franklin. 
 
 Essex loaded Bacon with benefits. — Macaulay. 
 
98 THE COERECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Lodge With, In. 
 
 With — To have an abode ; as : 
 
 He lodgeth with one Simon a tanner. 
 
 — Acts X, 6. 
 In, — To be deposited or fixed ; as : 
 **A seed lodged in a crevice of a rock.'' 
 
 Long Tor or After. 
 
 To have a craving or wistful desire ; as : 
 Oft when the wine in his glass was red, 
 He longed for the wayside well instead. 
 
 — Whittier. 
 I have longed after thy precepts. — Psalms. 
 
 Look Upon, Toward, After, At, On or Upon, To, Unto, For, 
 Into, In. 
 
 Upon, Toward. — To afford a view or ontlook : 
 
 **The windows look totvard the ocean." 
 
 **The house loohs upon a narrow street." 
 
 After, — To attend to ; as : 
 
 **He loohs after my luggage." 
 
 At. — To direct the understanding; as: 
 
 I often wished I could see how he looked at 
 
 things. — Drummond. 
 On or Upon. — To esteem ; as : 
 **I look on (or upon) him as a friend." 
 To, Unto. — To give heed to; to depend upon 
 
 for something ; as : 
 Look to the woman. — Jonson. 
 '*He looks to me for payment." 
 Look unto me, and be ye saved. — Isa. xiv. 22. 
 For. — Search for something; as: 
 
 **Did you Zoo^ /or my knife?" 
 
 Into. — To inspect closely ; as : 
 
 He has thoroughly looked into and examined 
 
 human nature. — Bacon. 
 
 In. — To take a look or glance into a place ; as : 
 *'He looked in the window as he passed." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 99 
 
 Lord Over. 
 
 (Sometimes with it indefinite.) 
 
 And lorded over them whom now they serve. 
 
 -—'Milton. 
 Who yet would lord it o'er the rest. — Dry den. 
 
 Love Of, For, To. 
 
 Eegard with a strong feeling of affection; 
 hold dear ; as : 
 
 Smit with the love of sacred song. — Milton. 
 
 ^*His love for his country inspired his brave 
 deed.'' 
 
 ''Love to God and man." 
 
 Make Of, Out Of, From, With, By, For, To, For, Against. 
 
 Of, Out of, From. — The material from which 
 something is made ; as : 
 
 If my breast had not been made of faith and 
 my heart of steel. — Shakespeare. 
 
 Fairy tales are made out of the dreams of 
 the poor. — Lowell. 
 
 **The relic was made from a piece of the 
 Cross." 
 
 With. — The means used; as: 
 
 **The image was made with a jack-knife." 
 
 Into. — Convert or transform ; as : 
 
 Sometimes it (the peacock) was made into 
 pie. — Irving. 
 
 By. — The operative agency. 
 For. — The purpose; as: 
 Arrows of stone were made by the savages for 
 use in warfare. 
 For, To. — The design or intent in making ; as : 
 The sabbath was made for man. — Mark II. 27, 
 Man was made to mourn. — Burns, 
 
100 THE CORRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Of. — To think ; judge ; as : 
 I was only wondering what our people would 
 make of her. — Harper^s Magazine. 
 
 For. — To have effect ; contribute ; as : 
 There is an eternal power thai makes for 
 righteousness. — Cook. 
 
 Against. — Oppose; as: 
 
 ^'This argument onakes against his cause.'' 
 
 Marriage Of, Between, To, With, Among. 
 
 Of, Between. — Figuratively, any close union ; 
 as: 
 
 Beauty is the happiest marriage between the 
 invisible and the visible. — Calvert. 
 
 Let me not to the marriage of true minds 
 Admit impediments. — Shakespeare, 
 
 Martyr To or For, To. 
 To, For. — One who dies or suffers for a cause ; 
 
 as: 
 ^ ^ He died a martyr to his devotion to science. ' ' 
 ^'He died a willing martyr for our sins." 
 To. — One who suffers long from any cause; 
 
 as: 
 
 **She is a martyr to rheumatism.'' 
 
 Master Of, In. 
 
 One skilled in an art or trade ; as : 
 Great masters of ridicule. — Macaulay. 
 
 ^^He was a master m art." 
 
 Measure By, With. 
 
 With. — To bring into comparison or competi- 
 tion; opposed or set against as equal or as a 
 test of equality ; as : 
 
 He was compelled to measure his genius with 
 that of the greatest captain of the age. 
 
 — Prescott. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 101 
 
 By, — Appraise by comparison with something 
 else; as: 
 
 Measuring greatness hy adventitious circmn- 
 stances of greatness. — Goldsmith, 
 
 Meddle With, In. 
 
 Act in a matter with which one has no busi- 
 ness; concern one's self with or about some- 
 thing; as: 
 
 The civil lawyers have meddled in a 
 
 matter that belongs not to them. — Locke. 
 
 In those days nobody meddled with concerns 
 above his comprehension. — Irving. 
 
 Miss Alethen did not meddle with him 
 
 any more. — Cooke. 
 
 Mediate Between. 
 
 To interpose between persons to effect a 
 reconciliation; as: 
 
 Bacon attempted to mediate between his 
 friend and the Queen. — Macaulay. 
 
 Meditate On, Upon. 
 
 Fix one's thoughts with reference to a re- 
 sult ; as : 
 
 I will meditate the while upon some horrid 
 message for a challenge. — Shakespeare. 
 
 A Buddhist only meditates on the per- 
 fections of the Buddha. — Monier Williams. 
 
 Meet With. 
 
 To light upon ; as : 
 
 We met with many things worthy of observa- 
 tion. — Bacon. 
 Menace With. 
 
 Threaten; as: 
 
 My master did menace me with death. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
102 THE COKEECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Militate Against, WitlL 
 
 (More rarely for or in favor of,) 
 Against. — Have weight or force, as in deter- 
 mining anything ; as : 
 
 Multiplicity of talents has too often militated 
 against the due fulfilment of some special bent. 
 
 — W. Sharp. 
 
 ** These facts militate for or in favor of your 
 theory/' 
 
 With. — To be in conflict ; as : 
 
 Against everything which militated with the 
 
 doctrines or ceremonies of his church 
 
 — Whipple. 
 Mindful Of. 
 
 Keeping in mind ; cognizant ; as : 
 I promise you to be mindful of your admoni- 
 tions. — Hammond. 
 
 And Guinevere not mindful of his face, 
 In the King's Hall, desired his name. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 
 Mingle With. 
 
 To mix: 
 
 They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with 
 gall. — Matt. XVII. 34. 
 
 Minister To. 
 
 Perform service of any kind ; afford supplies ; 
 remedy. 
 
 Canst thou not minister to a mind diseased? 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Mix With, In. 
 
 With. — To unite into one mass ; as : 
 * ^ Oil does not mix ivith water. ' ' 
 In. — Take part ; associate ; as : 
 ** He mioses m politics.' 
 
HOW TO USE IT 103 
 
 Mock At. 
 
 To ridicule or deride ; as : 
 *^The adversaries saw her and did mock at 
 her sabbaths.'' — Lam, i. 7. 
 
 Model In, On, After. 
 
 In. — To make a model ; as : 
 I rough out my thoughts in talk as an artist 
 models in clay. — Holmes. 
 
 On. — To form or plan according to a model ; 
 as: 
 
 The camp seemed like a community modeled 
 on the principle of Plato's republic. — Prescott. 
 
 After. — To form after a pattern; as: 
 [Nothing] justifies even a suspicion that 
 
 vertebrae are modeled after an ideal pattern. 
 
 — H. Spencer. 
 
 Mourn For, Over. 
 
 Express or feel grief or sorrow ; as : 
 
 ^^He moured for her all his life." 
 **He mourned over his loss." 
 
 Mulct, In, Of. 
 
 To punish by fine or forfeiture ; as : 
 ^*The judge mulcted the prisoner in $300." 
 **He was mulcted of his farm." 
 
 Name After, From, For. 
 After. — Give another person's name to; as: 
 ^^The child was nayned after his grandfather." 
 From. — A circumstance which gives rise to a 
 
 name ; as : 
 
 *^The constellation Ursa Major is as named 
 
 from its resemblance to the outline of a bear." 
 For. — Appointed; as: 
 Whom lately you have named for consul. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
104 THE COERECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 For, — In honor of; appointed; as: 
 
 ^^The child was named for his grandfather." 
 
 Necessary To, For. 
 Indispensable ; as : 
 
 **Air is necessary to support animal life." 
 A country replenished with all manner of 
 
 commodities necessary for man^s life. — Gory at. 
 
 Necessity Of, To, For. 
 
 now has grown. 
 
 The vast necessity of heart and life. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 
 ** Freedom is a necessity to responsibility." 
 ** There is no necessity for your being pres- 
 ent." 
 
 Need Of. , 
 
 Pressing occasion for something; as: 
 And the city had no need of the sun. 
 
 — Rev. xxi. 23, 
 
 Neglectful Of. 
 
 Full of neglect ; indifferent ; as : 
 
 Though the Eomans had no great genius for 
 trade, yet they were not entirely neglectful of 
 it. — ArhuthnoL 
 
 ' (Or absolutely; as: ^^He was very neglect- 
 ful.") 
 
 Negligent Of. 
 
 Careless; as: 
 
 He was a great student and rather negligent 
 of his business. — Cable, 
 Negotiate With, For, Between. 
 
 With, For, — Bargain or trade ; as : 
 ^*He negotiated with the dealer for five ear- 
 loads of coal." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 105 
 
 Between. — Conduct communications or con- 
 ferences ; as : 
 
 He that negotiates betiueen God and man. 
 
 ^ — Cowper, 
 
 Nicety Of, In. 
 
 Delicacy; exactness; as: 
 
 By his own nicety of observation 
 
 — Johnson. 
 
 His nicety in the use of vowel-sounds. 
 
 — Lowell. 
 
 Noted For. 
 
 Conspicuous ; distinguished ; as : 
 
 It (Tyre) is not at present noted for the Ly- 
 rian purple. — Pococke. 
 
 Notice Of. 
 
 The act of observing ; as : 
 
 The notice of this fact will lead us to some 
 very important conclusions. — French. 
 
 Obedient To. 
 
 Subject in will or act to authority ; as : 
 And floating straight, obedient to the stream. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Object To, Against. 
 
 To adduce as an objection or adverse reason ; 
 as: 
 
 **Can anyone object to such a statements 
 All that can be objected against this wide dis- 
 tance. — Puttenham. 
 
 Objection To, Against. 
 
 To. — That which is, or may be, presented in 
 opposition ; as : 
 
 *^I have no objection to going." 
 
 Against. — Fault found; impediment raised;, 
 as: 
 
 Objections against every truth. — Tyndale. 
 
106 THE COREECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Obligatory On or Upon. 
 
 Imposing obligation ; as : 
 
 If this patent is obligatory on them.— Swift. 
 
 *^ Obedience is obligatory on (or upon) a 
 soldier. ' ' 
 
 Oblivious Of. 
 
 Forgetful; lost in thought; as: 
 
 I was half-oblivious of my mask. — Tennyson. 
 Obnoxious To. 
 
 Liable or unanswerable ; repugnant ; as : 
 
 A man's hand 
 
 Is more obnoxious to the common peril. 
 
 — B. Jonson. 
 
 "The law was obnoxious to the people. 
 
 Observance Of. 
 
 Compliance, as with a custom, law, ceremony, 
 etc.; as: 
 
 "The observance of the Sabbath is general. '' 
 
 Obtain In, With, From, Of. 
 
 In. — To be common or customary ; as : 
 
 "The custom still obtains in some country 
 districts. ' ' 
 
 With. — To succeed in accomplishing an end; 
 as: 
 
 "His efforts obtained with the king.'' 
 
 From, Of. — To get ; secure ; as : 
 I come with resolution 
 To obtain a suit of you. — Beau, and Fi. 
 
 "The book can be obtained from the library." 
 
 Obtrude On, Upon. 
 
 To push forward into undue prominence ; as : 
 "The vulgar rich obtrude their pretensions 
 on the public." 
 Intrans. — Intrude; as: 
 
HOW TO USE IT 107 
 
 Let us not obtrude upon her sorrows' holy 
 solitude. — R. H. Dana, Sr. 
 
 Obvious To. 
 
 Easily discovered; evident; as: 
 
 they lie 
 
 Amidst the heap, and obvious to the eye. 
 
 — Pope. 
 Occasion For, Of. 
 
 For. — An opportunity permitting, or a rea- 
 son requiring action; as: 
 ** There is no occasion for haste.'' 
 Of, — Cause; as: 
 Her beauty was the occasion of the war. 
 
 — Dryden. 
 Oflfend By, Against, With, At. 
 
 By. — ^Vex ; annoy ; as : 
 ^'1 was offended by the request." 
 Against. — To break or transgress laws; to 
 do a wrong or injury to ; as : 
 
 We have offended against the Lord already. 
 
 — 2 Chron. xxviii:13. 
 
 At, With. — Displeased; as: 
 
 '*I am deeply offended at or with you." 
 
 Offensive To. 
 
 Displeasing, annoying; as: 
 
 '^Your actions are offensive to me." 
 
 Offer To, Of, For. 
 
 To tender or present for acceptance or rejec- 
 tion; as: 
 
 ' ' There are some of the ideas which reflection 
 offers to the mind." 
 
 For, Of (noun). — A proposal made and sub- 
 mitted; as: 
 
 **His offer of protection was declined." 
 
 ^*He made an offer for the building." 
 
108 THE COEKECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Operate On, Upon, Against, In, For. 
 
 On, Upon. — To exert power or force ; as : 
 The body operates very powerfully upon the 
 
 soul, both for good and evil. — Bonar, 
 
 The virtues of private persons operate but on 
 a few. — Atterhury. 
 
 In. — To carry on speculative transactions; 
 as: 
 
 He operates in oil. — Commercial Cant. 
 
 For, — In surgery, to perform an operation — 
 to produce some remedial result; to effect any 
 result; as: 
 
 **She was operated on for cataract of the 
 eye. ' ' 
 
 ^*The work operated for good." 
 
 Opinion On, About, Of. 
 
 Fifty . . . men . . . are likely to have fifty 
 opinions on the merits of Elizabeth or Crom- 
 well. — Froude. 
 
 On. — Settled judgment in regard to any point 
 of knowledge or action ; as : 
 
 *^ There can be but one opinion about the ad- 
 visability of going to war." 
 
 Of. — Estimation; as: 
 
 However, I have no opinion of those things. 
 
 — Bacon. 
 Opportunity For, To. 
 
 Fit, convenient, or seasonable time, favorable 
 chance ; as : 
 
 ■'^I found an opportunity for a good invest- 
 ment. ' ^ 
 
 *^I availed myself of the opportunity to go." 
 
 Oppose To. 
 
 To be adverse ; as : 
 
 **I am opposed to your going." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 109 
 
 Opposite To, Of. 
 
 To, — Adverse; opposed; as: 
 Thou art as opposite to every good as the 
 Antipodes are unto us. — Shakespeare. 
 
 Of (noun). — One who, or that which, is in 
 marked contrast ; as : 
 
 Clive seems to have been . . . the very op- 
 posite of a knave. — Macaulay. 
 
 In such constructions as, *^The store is oppo- 
 site to the postoffice/' '^to" is superfluous. 
 
 Opposition To. 
 
 The action of opposing; antagonism ; as : 
 The satisfaction of the bodily man need not 
 
 be made in opposition to higher interests. 
 
 — Mind. 
 
 Oppress By, With. 
 
 By. — To bear upon so as to cause a sensation 
 of pressure; wield authority over in a tyran- 
 nical manner ; as : 
 
 **My lungs are oppressed by the damp air.'' 
 The champion of many states oppressed by 
 one too powerful monarchy. — Macaulay. 
 
 With. — Overburden; weigh down; as: 
 **My mind is oppressed with doubt.'' 
 
 Originate In, With, From (Archaic). 
 
 To have origin or beginning; as: 
 In the germs Verbascum, hybrids are sup- 
 posed to have often originated in a state of na- 
 ture. — Darivin. 
 
 *'The scheme originated with the governor." 
 '* Aristotle originates all knowledge from per- 
 ception. ' ' 
 
110 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Overwhelm With, By, In. 
 
 With, In, — Cover completely ; submerge ; also 
 figuratively; as: 
 
 — Chaucer. 
 
 He amazes us by bis variety, and overwhelms 
 us with bis wealtb. — D. H. Wheeler. 
 
 **Sbe is overwhelmed in sorrow." 
 
 By. — Overcome ; as : 
 
 **I am overwhelmed by your kindness.'' 
 
 Parallel to, With, Between, With (v.). 
 
 To, With. — Extended in tbe same direction, 
 and equi-distant ; having a like course ; as : 
 Revolutions . . . parallel to the equinoctial. 
 
 — Haklayt. 
 
 **Tbe trolley line runs parallel with the rail- 
 road," or, more recent, ** trolley parallels the 
 railroad." 
 
 With (v.) — To compare; make conformable 
 to something else ; equal in all essential parts ; 
 as: 
 
 I thought once to have paralleled him with 
 Alexander the Great. — B. Jonson. 
 
 By. — Equal; as: 
 ^ His life is paralleled even with the stroke and 
 line of his great justice. — Shakespeare. 
 
 A zeal only paralleled by his former. 
 Between, — A comparison made ; as : 
 *' Johnson's parallel between Dryden and 
 Pope." 
 
 Parley With. 
 
 To speak with another ; to hold a conference ; 
 as: 
 
 Whoever stands to parley with temptation, 
 parleys to be overcome. — Lillo. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 111 
 
 Part With, From. 
 
 With. — Give up; as: 
 
 * ^ The miser will not part with his money. ' ' 
 
 Fro w.— Take leave of ; as : 
 
 ''He parted from his friends with regret.'* 
 
 He owned that he had parted from the duke 
 only a few hours before. — Macaulay. 
 
 Part with is to relinquish possession. 
 
 Part from is to relinquish companionship. 
 Partake Of, In (rarely with). 
 
 Of, In, With. — To take or have a part in com- 
 mon with others ; participate ; share ; as : 
 
 Brutes partake in this faculty. — Locke. 
 
 He felt that wrong with wrong partakes, 
 That nothing stands alone. — Whittier. 
 
 I partake of many gifts of fortune and power 
 that I was never bom to. — Addison. 
 
 Of. — To have something of the nature, char- 
 acter, or function ; as : 
 
 ''He partakes equally of the philosopher and 
 of the poet.'' 
 Partaker Of, In. 
 
 One who takes or has a part or share in com- 
 mon with others ; as : 
 
 ... to become ourselves partakers of their 
 suffering. — W. Ollston. 
 
 .Wish me partaker in thy happiness, 
 When thou dost meet good hap. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 Partial To. 
 
 Greatly or unduly inclined to favor a person 
 or thing; as: 
 
 I pray . . . that he be not over partial to 
 North- Wales men. — Howell. 
 
 I'm partial to buff. — George Eliot 
 
113 THE COERECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Partiality For, To, Of. 
 
 For, — A special fondness ; predilection ; as : 
 
 ^^She has a partiality for painting/' 
 
 To, — Inclination to favor one party or one 
 
 side of a question more than another ; as : 
 A partiality to studies, which is prejudicial 
 
 ... to improvement. — Locke, 
 Of. — Bias ; unfairness ; as : 
 The partiality of our parents, who make the 
 
 most injurious distinctions between us. 
 
 — FranJclin, 
 
 Participate In. 
 
 Partake ; share ; as : 
 
 Either in joy or sorrow, my friend should 
 participate in my feelings. — Goldsmith, 
 
 Patient Toward, With, Under, Of. 
 
 Toward, With, — Forbearing ; as : 
 
 Be patient toward all men. — 1 Thess, v, 14, 
 
 *^Be patient with me, and I shall soon finish 
 
 the work." 
 
 Under, — Quiet endurance ; as : 
 
 ** Faith makes us patient under affliction,^ ^ 
 
 Century gives patient of, capable of bearing ; 
 
 susceptible; as: 
 
 . . . it is at least patient of the better sense 
 
 which I wish to put upon it. — E, A, Freeman, 
 
 Pay For, With, To. 
 
 For, — Make amends for; give equal value 
 for; as: 
 
 ^^Men often pay for their mistakes with suf- 
 fering.'' 
 
 With, — Medium of exchange ; as : 
 
 He attacked . . . the practice of paying 
 Hanoverian troops with English money. 
 
 — Macaulay, 
 
HOW TO USE IT 113 
 
 To. — The person paid ; as : 
 ''Pay to the bearer." 
 
 Payment Of, For. 
 
 0/. — The discharge of a debt or obligation; 
 as: 
 
 No man envieth the payment of a debt. 
 
 — Bacon. 
 
 For. — Given in discharge of a debt ; as : 
 Too little payment for so great a debt. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 Peck At. 
 
 To attack repeatedly ; carp at ; as : 
 Mankind lie pecking at one another. 
 
 — Sir R. L' Estrange. 
 Peculiar To. 
 
 Pertaining to one; of private, personal, or 
 characteristic possession and use ; as : 
 
 Adam assigned to every creature a name 
 peculiar to its nature. — Sir T. Browne. 
 Pendant or Pendent (latter the usual form) From. 
 
 Hanging ; suspended ; as : 
 ''Pendent from the ceiling were garlands of 
 roses." 
 
 Penetrate To, Into, With. 
 
 To, Into. — To enter by piercing; as: 
 But soon the light . . . penetrates to the 
 deepest valley. — Macaulay. 
 
 With. — To enter and become part of; per- 
 meate ; as : 
 
 That little cloud in ether spread, 
 And penetrated all with tender light. 
 
 — Wordsworth. 
 
 The schools of China have always been pene- 
 trated with the religion of China. — H. A. Hodge. 
 
114 THE COEEECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Persevere In. 
 
 Persist in an undertaking ; as : 
 
 To persevere in any evil course makes you 
 unhappy in this life. . . . — Apb. Wake, 
 Persist Ib. 
 
 Adhere firmly to any course ; as : 
 
 **He persists in his folly." 
 Pertain To, Unto. 
 
 Belong, appertain, as a possession or an ad- 
 junct, relate ; have reference to ; as : 
 
 The Crown 
 And all wide- stretched honours that pertain 
 
 Unto the Crown of France. — Shakespeare. 
 
 * * Flowers pertain to plant life. ' ' 
 
 **That pertains to another matter." 
 Pertinent To, Unto. 
 
 Pertaining; that regards or has reference; 
 as: 
 
 Anything pertinent unto faith and religion. 
 
 — Hooker. 
 
 **That is not pertinent to the question." 
 Pine For. 
 
 Long for ; as : 
 
 For whom, and not for Tybalt, Juliet pined. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 Pit Against. 
 
 Match as contestants one against the other; 
 as: 
 
 Socrates is pitted against the famous atheist 
 from Ionia. — Macaulay. 
 Pitch On, upon. 
 
 To fix or decide ; as : 
 
 Pitch upon the best course of life, and custom 
 will render it the most easy. — Tillotson. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 115 
 
 Pity On, Upon, For. 
 
 On or Upon. — A feeling which inspires one 
 to relieve the suffering of others ; as : 
 
 He that hath pity upon the poor lendeth unto 
 the Lord.— Prov. xix, 17, 
 
 For, — Sympathetic sorrow; as: 
 
 . . . pity for a horse overdriven. — Tennyson, 
 Play On, Upon, With, At. 
 
 On, Upon, — Perform on a musical instrument ; 
 operate with repeated action ; trifle with ; as : 
 
 . . . three Mahometans playing on a tam- 
 bour. — Pococke, 
 
 '*The firemen were not permitted to play on 
 the flames. V' 
 
 ^^The firemen played upon the burning build- 
 ing. ^^ 
 
 You play upon the weakness of my disposi- 
 tion. — Sheridan, 
 
 With, — Join in sport or frolic; act thought- 
 lessly ; as : 
 
 '*He played with the children. '^ 
 
 Do not play tvith mine anger. — Beau, and Fl, 
 
 At, — To contend in a game of skill or chancfe ; 
 specifically, to gamble ; as : 
 
 The ladies play at cards . . . — Ford, 
 Plead With, For, Against. 
 
 Urge a plea for or against a claim ; endeavor 
 to persuade by argument or supplication ; as : 
 that one might plead for a, man tvith God, 
 as a man pleadeth for his neighbor. 
 
 — J oh xvif 21. 
 
 Is it not time to plead for a reform in the 
 writing of biographies? — Phelps, 
 
 I will plead against it with my life. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
116 THE COERECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Pleased At, With. 
 
 At, — Gratified at results ; as : 
 I was pleased at the result of the confer- 
 
 (< 
 
 With. — That which excites pleasure ; as : 
 Pleased with his daily task. — Wordsworth, 
 
 Plunge In, Into. 
 
 To cast or thrust suddenly into some penetra- 
 ble substance ; figuratively, to throw into some 
 thing, condition, or action ; as : 
 
 ' ' The hare plunged into the thicket. ' ' 
 Yet he listened plunged in thought. 
 
 — M. Arnold. 
 
 ... we shall be plunged into perpetual er- 
 rors. — Watts. 
 
 Possess Of, With, By. 
 
 With. — To imbue or impress ; as : 
 
 I have been . . . possessed with an extreme 
 wonder at those your virtues. — Bacon. 
 
 Of J Withy By. — To have complete mastery 
 over; as: 
 
 ... he that was possessed of the devils was 
 healed. — Luhe viii, 36. 
 
 One of those fanatic infidels possessed hy the 
 devil. — Irving. 
 
 Unless you be possessed with devilish spirits. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Of. — Cause to have (used reflexively or in the 
 passive) ; as: 
 
 **I have possessed myself of his estate.'' 
 Possess yourself of solid reasons. — Webster. 
 
 Pounce On, Upon. 
 
 Seize suddenly; as: 
 
 The eagle pounces on the lamb. — Scott. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 117 
 
 Eagles ... do not sail down from the clouds 
 in order to pounce upon small flies. — Thackeray. 
 
 Predispose To. 
 
 Cause a tendency in a particular direction; 
 as: 
 
 '^The use of impure water predisposes to 
 cholera. ' ' 
 
 Prefer To (sometimes above, rarely before). 
 
 To give precedence in the mind, affection, or 
 choice ; as : 
 
 I am to prefer the good of my health before 
 the good of my wealth. — Hale, , 
 
 If I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy^ 
 
 — Ps. cxxxvii, 6. 
 
 ''He preferred sl novel to sl play." 
 
 Preferable To. 
 
 More desirable ; as : 
 
 Almost every man . . . hath a scheme . . . 
 preferable to that of any other person. 
 
 — Addison. 
 Preference Of, Over, For, To, Above. 
 
 Ofy Over, Above. — Estimation of one thing 
 over or above another ; as : 
 
 Preference of one man's knowledge over [or 
 above] another's. — Locke. 
 
 For, To. — Choice; as: 
 ^^I have a preference for lighter plays.'' 
 *^We shall go to the country in preference to 
 the seashore." 
 
 Prefix To. 
 
 Attach at the beginning ; as : 
 . . . to which was prefixed an elaborate Dec- 
 laration of Eights. — Sumner. 
 
118 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Pregnant With. 
 
 Impregnated; filled; as: 
 
 Such the bard's prophetic words, 
 Pregnant with celestial fire. — Cowper, 
 
 Each hour is pregnant with a thousand perils. 
 
 — Byron. 
 Prejudice Against. 
 
 Prepossess with opinions formed without due 
 knowledge or examination ; bias ; as : 
 
 *'You were prejudiced against the man from 
 the beginning. ' ' 
 
 Prejudicial To. 
 
 Detrimental; as: 
 
 His going away was most prejudicial to the 
 king's affairs. — Clarendon. 
 Prepare For. 
 
 Make ready ; as : 
 
 Bid them prepare for dinner. — Shakespeare. 
 
 Our souls, not yet prepared for upper light. 
 
 — Dry den. 
 Preserve From. 
 
 To keep safe or free from harm ; as : 
 *^She preserved the child from danger.'' 
 Present To, With. 
 
 To. — Bestow ; introduce formally ; as : 
 *^We presented a gold watch to the president. 
 
 The ambassador was presented to the king." 
 With. — That which is bestowed ; as : 
 **He was presented with a watch." 
 
 Preside At, Over. 
 
 Over. — To exercise superintendence and di- 
 rection; as: 
 
 *^A governor presides over sl state." 
 At. — To be set, or to sit, in the place of 
 authority; as: 
 
HOW TO USE IT 119 
 
 *^Mr. Blank presided at the meeting of the 
 directors.'* 
 Press On, Upon. 
 
 Weigh heavily upon ; plead persistently ; as : 
 
 . . . the responsibility which presses on the 
 heart of a statesman. — E. P, Whipple, 
 
 Be sure to press upon him every motive. 
 
 — Addison, 
 Presume On, Upon. 
 
 To proceed presumptuously or with arro- 
 gance ; as : 
 
 Do not presume too much upon my love. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
 **He presumes on his position." 
 Pretend To. 
 
 To lay claim ; as : 
 
 I do not pretend to more generosity . . . 
 than others. — Maria Edgworth, 
 Prevail Over, Against, On, Upon, With. 
 
 Over, Against. — To have or gain advantage; 
 to be superior in strength ; as : 
 
 The disquiets of my mind prevailed over my 
 weariness, and kept me awake. — Swift. 
 
 **We have prevailed over our enemies; none 
 can prevail against us. * ' 
 
 On, Upon, With. — To persuade or induce ; as : 
 
 **He prevailed on me to go.'* 
 
 If arguments prevail not with such a one, 
 force is well used. — Milton. 
 
 Prevail upon some judicious friend to be your 
 constant hearer. — Sivift. 
 Prevent From, 
 
 Impede ; restrain ; as : 
 
 ^^Extraordinary precautions were taken to 
 prevent the matter from becoming public." 
 
120 THE COKKECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Previous To. 
 
 Antecedent to ; as : 
 
 And something previous even to taste — 'tis 
 sense. — Pope, 
 Previously To. 
 
 Beforehand ; in time preceding ; as : 
 
 ^*I saw him previously to my going abroad.'' 
 
 . . . but had been on intimate terms with him 
 
 previously to that time. — 0. W. Holmes. 
 
 Prey On, Upon. 
 
 Take booty; make a victim of one in any 
 sense ; bring injury or destruction ; seize and de- 
 vour an animal as prey; as: A succession of 
 ferocious invaders prey on the defenseless 
 wealth of Hindustan. — Macaulay, 
 
 'Tis 
 The royal disposition of that beast [the lioness] 
 To prey on nothing that doth seem as dead. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 Keep his mind from preying on itself. 
 
 — M. Arnold. 
 , it preys upon his life. — Addison, 
 Prior To [used adverbially]. 
 
 Previous; as: - ^ 
 
 . prior to the reconstruction of society 
 under the Emperors, skepticism had widely 
 spread. — Fisher, 
 Privy To. 
 
 Privately knowing ; as : 
 
 *'He was privy to the affair.'' 
 Proceed From. ' 
 
 To issue or come ; as : 
 
 Excessive laughter proceeding from a slight 
 cause is folly. — Cervantes, 
 Productive Of. 
 
 Producing ; producing abundant crops ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 121 
 
 Evil times are not always productive of evil 
 alone and unmixed. — Scott. 
 
 Fruitful vales so productive of that grain. 
 
 — Swift, 
 
 Proficient In. 
 
 Skilled; as: 
 
 Proficient in all craft and stealthiness. 
 
 — Browning. 
 Profit (V.) By. 
 
 To gain ; to advance ; become richer ; as : 
 
 I profit not Ijy thy talk. — Shakespeare. 
 
 The Eomans . . . did not profit much by 
 trade. — Arhuthnot. 
 Profit (n.) Of, On, In, From. 
 
 Of. — Benefit; return; as: 
 
 The solitary worker loses the profit of ex- 
 ample and discussion. — H. James, Jr. 
 
 The profits of capital are the reward of la- 
 bor. — F. Bowen. 
 
 On, From. — Pecuniary gain; as: 
 
 ^^He made a large profit on the sale of his 
 house." 
 
 The gross profit from capital . . . must 
 afford a sufficient remuneration for the labor 
 and skill required for superintendence. 
 
 —J. S. Mill. 
 
 Profitable To, For. 
 
 To. — Beneficial ; as : 
 
 What was so profitable to the empire became 
 fatal to the emperor. — Arhuthnot. 
 
 For. — Useful; as: 
 
 *^The study of language is profitable for 
 mental discipline." 
 ProMbit From. 
 
 To forbid by authority ; as : 
 
 '^Automobiles are prohibited from going 
 through this village at a rate of speed exceeding 
 eight miles an hour." 
 
122 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Prolific Of. 
 
 Fruitful of results; as: 
 
 *'The controversy was prolific of evil conse- 
 quences/' 
 Prone To. 
 
 Disposed; as: 
 
 He is . . . prone to mischief. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 Pronounce Upon, For, Against. 
 
 Upon. — To express an opinion; as: 
 
 '*I cannot yet pronounce upon the merits of 
 the book." 
 
 For, Against. — Declare one's self; as: 
 
 . . there are more than a dozen who 
 have . . . pronounced for the principle of 
 Home Eule. — Contemporary Review. 
 
 *^The President has pronounced against the 
 plan. ' ' 
 Proof To, Against. 
 
 Able to resist; impenetrable; as: 
 
 I . . . have found thee 
 Proof against all temptation. — Milton. 
 If James had not been proof to all warnings. 
 
 — Macaulay. 
 Proper To. 
 
 Essentially belonging to a thing; as : 
 The idea of God is as proper to the race as 
 that of self is to the individual. — Hedge. 
 Proportion To. 
 
 To adjust in a suitable proportion; as: 
 . . . how curious it would be if our happi- 
 ness in another world were proportioned to the 
 happiness we occasion around us in this. 
 
 — Catherine Sinclair. 
 Protect Prom, Against. 
 
 Shield from danger, defend against that 
 which attacks; as: 
 
HOW TO USE IT 123 
 
 . . . and him within protect from harm. 
 
 — Milton, 
 ''He wore a heavy coat to protect himself 
 against the cold." 
 Protest Against. ' 
 
 Enter a formal dissent ; as : 
 
 ''He protests against your appointment." 
 Provide With, For, Against. 
 
 With. — To furnish; supply; as: 
 
 Eome . . . was well provided with corn. 
 
 — Arhuthnot. 
 
 For, Against. — To take precautionary meas- 
 ures; as: 
 
 He is a fool that provides not for that which 
 will most certainly come. — Hale. 
 
 Providing against the inclemency of the 
 weather. — Hale. 
 Purchase Of or From. 
 
 Buy; as: 
 
 The field which Abraham purchased of the 
 sons of Heth. — Gen. xxv. 10. 
 
 "He purchased the farm from the owner." 
 Purge Of, From. 
 
 To clear from accusation ; to clear from moral 
 defilement ; as : 
 
 The Judiciary Committee can decide whether 
 or not they should be purged of their contempt. 
 — New York Tribune, 
 
 — New York Tribune. 
 
 Archbishop Arundel had to purge himself 
 from a like suspicion. — Stubbs, 
 Pursuance Of. 
 
 A following after or following out ; as : 
 
 George was to depart from town, ... in 
 pursuance of his patron's directions. 
 
 — Goldsmith. 
 
124 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Pursuant To. 
 
 According to ; following ; as : 
 
 I rise Sir, pursuant to notice, to ask leave to 
 bring in a bill. — D. Webster. 
 
 Put On, Upan, To, In, Into. 
 
 On, Upon, — Inflict upon; impute to; as: 
 You do not fair to put these things upon 
 
 me. — B, Jonson. 
 
 *'You must put the blame on someone else." 
 
 To. — Add to; consign; direct one's course; 
 as: 
 
 ... Nothing can be put to it, nor any- 
 thing taken from it. — Eccl. iii. 14. 
 
 Such . . . were put to the sword. . . . 
 
 — Clarendon. 
 
 His fury thus appeased, he puts to land. 
 
 — Dry den. 
 
 In, Into. — To place, or cause to be in any posi- 
 tion or situation; as: 
 
 ^'Put water into the bottle." 
 But sit beside my bed, mother, and put your 
 hand in mine. — Tennyson. 
 
 This question ask'd 
 Puts me in doubt. — Milton. 
 
 Quarrel With, About or Over. 
 
 With. — Find fault; cavil; dispute angrily; 
 fall out ; as : 
 
 We will not quarrel with ambition when it is 
 wise enough to devote itself to the happiness of 
 mankind. — Channing. 
 
 ^*As soon as he returned he began to quarrel 
 with me. " , 
 
 About, Over. — dispute angrily about or over 
 some matter ; as : 
 And Jealousy, and Fear, and Wrath, and War 
 
HOW TO USE IT 125 
 
 QuarreVdy although in heaven, about their 
 place. J. Beaumont, 
 
 *^They quarreled over the division of the 
 estate. ' ' 
 
 (Or absolutely; as: *^The president and the 
 secretary have quarreled/') 
 
 Quarter On, Upon, In, With. 
 
 On, Upon. — To furnish with lodgings ; as : 
 ' * The troop were quartered on or upon the in- 
 habitants. '^ 
 In, With. — Stationed or lodged ; as : 
 He quarters in the last room in the gallery. 
 
 — Cooper, 
 Some fortunate captains 
 That quarter with him. . . . 
 
 — Fletcher. 
 ' ' The troops were quartered in the town. ' ' 
 
 Back With. 
 
 Affect with great pain or distress; as: 
 Vaunting aloud but racked with deep despair. 
 
 — Milton. 
 
 Bail At, Against. 
 
 Blame with bitterness ; scoff ; as : 
 
 It is better to fight for the good, than to rail 
 
 at the ill. — Tennyson. 
 **It is useless to rail against fate.'' 
 
 Behel Against. 
 
 To be disobedient to authority ; revolt ; as : 
 ^^Then he turned and rebelled against him." 
 
 How could your heart rebel against your 
 reason! — Dry den. 
 Recede From. 
 
 To move back ; turn back or aside ; as : 
 The world receded from her rising view. 
 
 — Crabbe. 
 
136 THE COERECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 It is plain that the more you recede from 
 your grounds the weaker do you conclude. 
 
 —Bacon. 
 
 Receive From. 
 
 To obtain as a result of delivery; as: 
 * * I received a letter from my sister. ' ' 
 
 Reckon On, Upon, With, For. 
 
 On, Upon, — To lay stress or dependence ; as : 
 Don't reckon too much on her want of expe- 
 rience. — Lever. 
 
 My Lord Ambassador Aston reckons upon 
 you. — Howell. 
 
 With, — To settle accounts ; as : 
 *^I will reckon with you later." 
 For. — Be answerable for ; as : 
 If they fail in their bounden duty, they shall 
 reckon for it one day. — Bp. Sanderson, 
 
 Recline On, Upon. 
 
 Place in a recumbent position ; as : 
 Reclined her dying head upon his breast. 
 
 — Dry den. 
 
 On silken ^* cushions'' half reclined. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 Reconcile To, With or To. 
 
 To. — Quiet submission; to bring again to 
 friendly feelings ; as : 
 *^She is reconciled to her lot." 
 *^He was reconciled to his brother." 
 
 With or To. — To make consistent or congru- 
 ous; bring to agreement; rid of apparent dis- 
 crepancies; as: 
 
 *^How can he reconcile his statements with 
 his conduct?" 
 
HOW TO USE IT 127 
 
 Some figures monstrous and misshaped appear, 
 Which . . . due distance reconciles to form 
 and grace. — Pope. 
 
 The great men of ancient times understood 
 how to reconcile manual labor with affairs of 
 state. — Locke. 
 
 This reconciled me to the newspaper ac- 
 counts. — B. Franklin. 
 
 Recover From. 
 
 To regain a former state after misfortune or 
 sickness; as: 
 **She has recovered from her recent illness." 
 
 Recreant To. 
 
 Unfaithful; betraying trust; as: 
 
 I . . . offered up a vow . . . that I 
 
 would in no manner prove recreant to her dear 
 
 memory. — Poe. 
 
 Reduce To, By, Under. 
 
 To. — To bring to any specified state or condi- 
 tion ; to bring into a class ; as : 
 
 **The man was reduced to poverty.'' 
 Goethe had no . . . beliefs of any kind 
 which could not be reduced to formulas. ^ 
 
 By. — That which reduces; to subdue as by ^ 
 force of arms; as: 
 
 **The patient was much reduced hy hem- 
 orrhage. ' ' 
 
 ** Spain, Gaul, and Britain were reduced hy 
 the Roman arms." 
 
 Refer To. 
 Allude ; assign as to origin ; to hand over for 
 
128 THE CORRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 The American Declaration of Independence 
 does not once refer to the British Parliament. 
 
 — Goodrich. 
 
 Mahomet referred his new laws to the angel 
 Gabriel. — Burton. 
 
 I refer it to your own judgment. — B. Jonson. 
 I would refer the reader to the admirable ex- 
 position. . . . — Contemporary Review. 
 
 Reflect On, Upon. 
 
 To cast reproach; to revert, return; to con- 
 template, ponder; as: 
 
 *'His conduct reflects on his parents.'' 
 Neither do I reflect in the least upon the mem- 
 ory of his late majesty. — Swift. 
 
 Whose virtues will, I hope. 
 Reflect on Eome, as Titian's rays on earth. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 **I will reflect on what you have said." 
 We cannot be said to reflect upon any exter- 
 nal object except ... its image has be- 
 come part ... of our intellectual furni- 
 ture. — Sir W. Hamilton. 
 
 Refrain From. 
 
 Abstain; keep one's self from action or inter- 
 ference; as: 
 
 **He refrained from answering." 
 **It was with difficulty that he refrained from 
 striking the man." 
 
 Regard For, To. 
 
 For. — Consideration; esteem; as: 
 Hero-worship is strongest where there is 
 
 least regard for human freedom. — H. Spencer. 
 **I have a sincere regard for him." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 129 
 
 To, — Eelation; reference (generally preceded 
 by in or with) ; as : 
 
 ^^He spoke feelingly with regard to your 
 work. ' ' 
 
 Eegret For. 
 
 A wishing that something had not happened ; 
 sorrow; as: 
 
 Never any prince expressed a more lively 
 regret for the loss of a servant. — Clarendon. 
 
 Anguish and regret. 
 For loss of life and pleasure overloved. 
 
 —Milton. 
 Rejoice In, At, With. 
 
 In, — Be full of joy; as: 
 
 **I rejoice in your success.'' 
 
 At, — Made happy by something ; as : 
 
 ^*We rejoiced at his coming.'' 
 
 With. — Enter into ajnother's feeling of 
 joy; as: 
 
 ^^We rejoice with you in your mother's re- 
 covery. ' ' 
 
 Relate To. * 
 
 To have reference or respect ; as : 
 Pride relates more to our opinion of our- 
 selves. — Jane Austin, 
 
 Relative To. 
 
 Having relation to or bearing on some- 
 thing; as: 
 
 ^^I shall be pleased to answer your question 
 relative to the best dictionary." 
 
 Relatively To. 
 
 Comparatively ; in relation to something else : 
 *^His expenditure in charity was large rela- 
 tively to his income." 
 
130 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 I wrote you relatively to the matter several 
 days ago. 
 
 Belease From. 
 
 To free, as from prison, pain, debt, care, 
 etc.; as: 
 
 Leisure, silence, and a mind released 
 From anxious thoughts how wealth may be in- 
 creased. — Cowper. 
 
 The people begged to be released from a part 
 of their rates. — Emerson. 
 
 Relegate To. 
 
 Eemove ; transfer ; banish ; as : 
 
 We have not relegated religion to obscure 
 municipalities. — Burke. 
 
 Relegate to worlds yet distant our purpose. 
 
 — M. Arnold. 
 
 Relieve Of, From, Against, With. 
 
 Of. — To take from, as a burden ; as : 
 
 He . . . relieved her of her prayer-book. — 
 
 Mrs. Gashell. 
 
 From. — To free wholly or partly from some- 
 thing painful or disasrreeable ; as : 
 
 **The people were thus relieved from oppres- 
 sion.'* 
 
 Against. — To put in relief; as: 
 
 Her tall figure relieved against the blue 
 sky . . . — Sir Walter Scott. 
 
 With. — To introduce a contrast or variety 
 into; as: 
 
 The poet must . . . sometimes relieve the 
 subject with a moral reflection. — Addison. 
 
 Relish For, Of. 
 For. — A taste for; fondness; as: 
 
HOW TO USE IT 
 
 131 
 
 A relish for whatever was excellent in art. 
 
 — Macaulay. 
 Of, — Savor; characteristic tinge; as: 
 It preserves some relish of old writing. — Pope, 
 
 Eely On, Upon. 
 
 Fix one's confidence; trust; depend; as: 
 
 It is a like error to rely on . . . lawyers 
 
 which . . . are not grounded in their book. 
 
 — Bacon, 
 
 . . . but rely only upon the scriptures. 
 
 — Milton. 
 Bemain In, At. 
 
 To continue in a place; continue without 
 change; as: 
 
 He should have remained in the city of his 
 refuge. — Num. xxxv. 28. 
 
 Great and active minds cannot remain at 
 rest. — Macaulay. 
 Bemark On, Upon. 
 
 To make observations ; comment ; as : 
 
 '*He saw it, and remarked upon it's peculiar 
 appearance. ' ' 
 Eemedy For. 
 
 That which cures a disease, or corrects an 
 evil; reparation; as: 
 
 **The remedy for political evils is in the 
 hands of the voters." 
 Bemit To. 
 
 Send back ; give up ; as : 
 
 The prisoner was remitted to the guards. 
 
 — Dry den, 
 Bomonstrate With, Against. 
 
 Expostulate with a person^ against some act 
 or proceeding ; as : 
 
 **We remonstrated with him in yain." 
 
132 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION; 
 
 '* Conscience remonstrates against a profli- 
 gate life.'' 
 Bemove From. 
 
 To change place in any manner ; banish ; dis- 
 place from office; 
 
 ^*He removed from Edinburgh." 
 
 Remove sorrow from thy heart. Eccl. xi., 10. 
 
 ''He removed the treasurer /rom office. 
 Repent of (Archaic). 
 
 Experience sorrow with a desire to amend ; as : 
 
 '*He repented him of his faults.'' 
 Repine At, Against. 
 
 To be fretfully discontented, murmur ; as : 
 
 ''Do not repine at (or against) your lot in 
 life, but rather seek to improve it. ' ' 
 Replete With. 
 
 Filled up : abounding ; 
 
 A comedy . . . replete with wit and mirth. 
 
 — Sheridan, 
 Repose On, Upon. 
 
 To rest in confidence ; as : 
 
 Upon whose faith and honor I repose. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
 The soul, reposing on assured relief, 
 Feels herself happy amidst all her grief. 
 
 — Cowper, 
 Reproach With, For. 
 
 Censure with severity ; upbraid. 
 Scenes which . . . would not reproach me 
 with the loss I felt. — Cowper, 
 
 "I reproached him for his conduct." 
 
 Repugnant To. 
 
 Highly distasteful; as: 
 
 There are certain national dishes that are 
 repugnant to evevj foreign palate. — Lowell, 
 
HOW TO USE IT 133 
 
 Requisite For. 
 
 Necessary; indispensable; as: 
 
 Every work of art should contain within itself 
 all that is requisite for its own comprehension. 
 
 —Poe. 
 Resemblance To, Between Of. 
 
 To, Between. — Likeness ; as : 
 
 *^They bear a great resemblance to each 
 other. ' ' 
 
 *'It would be easy to indicate many points of 
 resemblance between them.'' 
 
 Of. — A representation ; semblance ; as : 
 
 He is then described as gliding through the 
 garden under the resemblance of a mist. 
 
 — Addison. 
 Reside In, At» On. 
 
 {Live is preferable in ordinary speech.) 
 
 Have a settled abode for a considerable time ; 
 be inherent in, as a quality ; as : 
 
 '*He resides in Chicago, on Michigan Ave- 
 nue." 
 
 At the moated grange resides this dejected 
 Marianna. — Shakespeare. 
 
 It is in man . . . that the secret of his des- 
 tiny resides. — Gladstone. 
 
 Resolve To, Into, On, Upon. 
 
 To. — Separate into constituent parts ; as : 
 Earth that nourished thee, shall claim 
 Thy growth, to be resolved to earth again. 
 
 — Bryant. 
 Into. — Dissolve ; melt ; as : 
 0, that this too, too solid flesh would melt, 
 Thaw, and resolve itself into a dew. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
134 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 On, Upon, — To determine on a course of coa- 
 duct or action ; as : 
 
 **We resolved on (or upon) going^/' 
 Respect For, To, Of. 
 
 Esteem; regard. 
 
 Milton's respect for himself . . . rises well 
 nigh to veneration. — Lowell, 
 
 I have great respect for the man. 
 No man forgets respect to another who knows 
 the value of respect to himself. — Bulwer. 
 
 In or with respect to. — Eelation; reference; 
 as: 
 
 **I learned nothing with respect to the 
 affair." 
 
 Of, — To regard persons with partiality ; as : 
 
 It is not good to have respect of persons in 
 judgment. — Prov, xxiv. 23. 
 
 Rest On, Upon, In, Prom, With. 
 
 On, Upon. — Have a foundation, literally or 
 figuratively; trust; rely; depend for support; 
 as: 
 
 Eloquence . . . rests on laws the most exact 
 and determinate. — Emerson. 
 
 Belief rests upon knowledge. — R, James, 
 
 In, — Acquiesce ; be content ; be dead ; as : 
 In a patient hope / rest. , , . — Whittier, 
 
 *^He rests in the grave." 
 From. — Cease; as: 
 *^He rested from his labors." 
 With, — Be in the power of ; depend upon ; as : 
 ^^The question rests with the people." 
 Restore To. 
 
 To bring back to a former state ; return ; as : 
 *'The patient was restored to health." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 135 
 
 **The monarch was restored to his throne.'' 
 **The book was restored to its owner." 
 Bestralu From, Of. 
 
 From, — To check; hinder; as: 
 
 **Some men are restrained from evil only by 
 the fear of punishment." 
 
 Of, — Eestrict ; hinder from liberty of action ; 
 as: 
 
 Though they two were . . . restrained of 
 their liberty. — Clarendon. 
 
 Eesult In, From. 
 
 In, — Terminate or end ; as : 
 **The exposure resulted in his death." 
 From. — Spring or proceed from; as: 
 **The war resulted from a mistaken policy." 
 
 Return To. 
 
 Elect as a member of Congress or of Parlia- 
 ment ; to go or come back to a former state or 
 place; as: 
 
 ^^Lord Bolingbrooke was not returned to 
 Parliament. ' ' 
 
 ^^He returned to his father's house." 
 
 Bevel In. 
 
 Indulge freely; delight keenly; as: 
 
 Poetry here seems to assume the highest tone 
 
 of triumph and exultation, and to revel . . . 
 
 in all the extravagance of joy. — R. Lowth. 
 
 Our kind host . . . reveled in my father's 
 humor. — Lady Holland. 
 
 Reverse Of. 
 
 That which is directly opposite or contrary; 
 as: 
 
 Too much courtesy ... is often the reverse 
 of kindness. — Scott. 
 
136 THE COEKECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Bevert To. 
 
 To return; to come back; to go back in 
 thought; as: 
 
 So that my arrows 
 Would have reverted to my bow again. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
 As fancy reverts to my father's plantation. 
 
 — Woodworth, 
 
 Beward By, Witli, For. 
 
 Eecompense ; compensate ; as : 
 
 *^ Andrew Carnegie was rewarded by France 
 with the Cross of the Legion of Honor for his 
 efforts in the cause of universal peace. ' ' 
 
 Bich In, With. 
 
 Amply supplied or equipped; abundantly 
 provided; as: 
 
 Foremost captain of his time, 
 
 Rich in saving common sense. — Tennyson, 
 
 And make her chronicle as rich with praise 
 As is the ooze and bottom of the sea 
 With sunken wrecks and sumless treasures. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Bid Of. 
 
 Free; clear; as: 
 
 Rid all the sea of pirates. — Shakespeare. 
 
 Bob Of. 
 
 Plunder; steal from; as: 
 **In the rush the man was robbed of his 
 purse. ' ' 
 
 Bub Against. 
 
 Scrape; gaze; as: 
 
 *'The boat rubbed against the rocks." 
 
HOW TO USE IT 137 
 
 Buluous To. 
 
 Destructive; as: 
 
 Nothing can be more ruinous to a mountain- 
 ous country than to cut down its forests. 
 
 — W. M. Thompson. 
 Rule By, With, Over, On. 
 
 By. — Take the advice of (generally in the 
 passive) ; govern; 
 .We'll do thee homage and be ruled by thee. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 With, — To guide or order aright ; as : 
 His actions seemed ruled with a ruler. — Lamb, 
 Over. — Have dominion over ; as : 
 We subdue and rule over all other creatures. 
 
 — Ray, 
 
 On. — To lay down a rule or order ; as : 
 *VThe judge has ruled on that point." 
 
 Sacred To. 
 
 Dedicated ; devoted ; consecrated ; as : 
 
 A temple sacred to the queen of love. — 
 
 A temple sacred to the queen of love. 
 
 — Dryden. 
 Sail To, For, From. 
 
 To journey by water ; as : 
 
 They sailed to the West Indies." 
 
 ^'They sailed from New York for Liverpool." 
 
 Sameness Of, In. 
 
 Essential resemblance ; dull monotony ; as : 
 '^They show much sameness of disposition." 
 He was totally unfitted for the flat sameness 
 of domestic life. — Melville, 
 
 It haunted me the morning long, 
 With weary sameness in the rhymes. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 
138 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Sate With. 
 
 Fill; satiate; as: 
 
 Crowds of wanderer's sated with the business 
 and pleasure of great cities. — Macauley, 
 
 Satiate (a) With. 
 
 Filled to satiety; as: 
 
 Summer winds 
 Satiate with sweet flowers. — Shelley. 
 
 (v.) I may yet survive tlie malice of my ene- 
 mies, although they should be satiated with my 
 blood. — Eikon Basilike, 
 
 Satisfy With. 
 
 Supply or gratify completely; content; as: 
 I pray you, let us satisfy our eyes 
 With the memorials and the things of fame 
 That do renown this city. — Shakespeare, 
 
 ... he was satisfied with their political 
 sub j ection . — Freeman. 
 
 Saturate With. 
 
 To fill to excess ; cause to be thoroughly pen- 
 etrated or imbued; as: 
 
 . . . emerald meadow, saturated with the 
 moisture of the Atlantic. — Macauley. 
 
 Fill and saturate each kind 
 
 With good according to its mind. — Emerson. 
 
 Save From, By. 
 
 From. — Preserve from danger; wrest from 
 something impending; as: 
 
 Her generosity saved the family from 
 
 a 
 
 By. — The means by which a person or thing 
 is saved; as: 
 **We are saved by faith.'' 
 
HOW TO USE IT 139 
 
 Savor Of. 
 
 Have a peculiar quality or characteristic; 
 as: 
 
 I have rejected everything that savors of 
 party. — Addison, 
 ScintUla Of. 
 
 A spark; the smallest trace or particle; as: 
 
 This assertion contains a scintilla of truth. 
 
 — Henri/ George. 
 
 Scoff At. 
 
 Deride; speak jeeringly; as: 
 
 It is an easy thing to scoff at any art or 
 recreation. — 7. Walton, 
 Screen From, By. 
 
 Shield from observation or annoyance as 
 with a screen ; as : 
 
 ^^The house was screened from the north 
 winds hy a hill.^' 
 
 **The criminal was screened from justice by 
 his friends." 
 Search For, Into. 
 
 For.— Look for something; as: 
 
 *^They searched for hidden treasure.'' 
 
 Into, — Make strict inquiry; as: 
 
 ^'Search into the cause of the uprising.'' 
 Season With, By. 
 
 With. — Eender more agreeable; make palat- 
 able ; add zest to ; mitigate ; imbue ; as : 
 
 **Meat must be seasoned with salt." 
 
 You season still with sports your serious 
 hours. — Dryden. 
 
 There is no mirth . . . not truly seasoned 
 with madness. — Ford. 
 
 By. — Bring to the best state for use by any 
 process; as: 
 
 ** Timber is seasoned by drying." 
 
140 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Secure From, Against, Of. 
 
 From, Against, — Free from danger; safe; 
 as: 
 
 For me, secure from fortune's blows. 
 
 — Dryden. 
 
 **They were now secure against the attacks 
 of the enemy.'' 
 
 Of. — Thoroughly confident ; as : 
 
 Secure of me, King! exhort the rest. — 
 Pope. 
 Seek After, For, Of, To. 
 
 After. — Try to obtain; as: 
 
 He seeks after wealth. 
 
 For. — Try to find; as: 
 
 **The sailors sought for safety." 
 
 Of. — To inquire for; solicit; as: 
 
 Others . . . sought of him a sign. 
 
 — Luke xi. 16. 
 To. — Endeavor; as: 
 
 A thousand ways he seeks 
 To mend the hurt that his unkindness marr'd. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Seek means to search for, and should not 
 properly be followed by ^^for" in this sense; 
 as: 
 
 Why seek ye the living among the dead ! 
 
 — Luke xxiv. 5. 
 Seize, On, Upon, With, By. 
 
 On, Upon. — Take sudden or forcible posses- 
 sion; lay hold of; as: 
 
 . . . some men . . . rapidly seize on the best 
 expedient. — Ranke. 
 
 Thee and thy virtues here I seize upon. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 
 
 141 
 
 With, By, — Come upon with sudden attack; 
 as: 
 
 *^He was seised by the robber.'^ 
 
 He was seized with a sudden desire to depart. 
 Sell For, By. 
 
 Dispose of for a price or by subscription. 
 
 ''He sold the house for three thousand 
 dollars. ' ' 
 
 The book will be sold by subscription only. 
 
 Things are sold at auction in the United 
 States, by auction in England. 
 
 Send To, For, By, From. 
 
 Cause or direct to go; despatch; as: 
 
 I sent the letter from New York to Chicago 
 
 by registered mail. 
 For. — To request or require by message ; as : 
 ''Next day the Queen sent for Lord L .'' 
 
 Sensible Of, To. 
 
 Of, — Having a perception or cognition ; fully 
 
 aware; as: 
 A man . . . cannot think at any time . . . 
 
 without being sensible of it. — Locke, 
 
 To, — Capable of being acted on through the 
 emotions or feelings; as: 
 
 Air is sensible to the touch by its motion. 
 
 — Arbuthnot, 
 Sensitive To. 
 
 Keenly susceptible of external influences or 
 impressions ; impressible ; as : 
 
 She was too sensitive to abuse and calumny. 
 
 — Macaulay, 
 Serve For, To. 
 
 For, — Be of use to, especially as a substi 
 tute; as: 
 
 "This umbrella will serve me for a cane.'' 
 To. — Suffice; as: 
 
142 THE COBRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 ^^ These few excerpts will serve to show the 
 character of the book.'' 
 
 Set In, With. 
 In, — To frame or mount; fix firmly; as: 
 **He had a beautiful emerald set in gold.*' 
 They show how hard they are set in this par- 
 ticular. — Addison, 
 With, — Adorned; as: 
 A rosebud set with little wilful thorns. 
 
 — Tennyson, 
 
 Pastoral dales thin set with modem farms. 
 
 — Wordsworth, 
 
 Settle On, Upon, In, With, For. 
 
 On, Upon, — To alight; determine; as: 
 Flocks of pigeons setting on the rocks. 
 
 — Moore, 
 Never settle upon any thing as true, because 
 
 it is safer to hold it than not. — Bushnell, 
 
 **They have not yet settled on a house.'' 
 
 Into, — Sink into; as : 
 
 *^The old structure began to settle into an ad- 
 joining excavation." 
 
 With, For, — To adjust difference or ac- 
 counts; as: 
 
 **He settled with his creditors for one-half 
 the amount due." 
 
 In, — Enter upon a residence; as: 
 
 He has settled in New York. 
 Shame Into. 
 
 To force or drive by shame ; as : 
 
 **He was shamed into doing his duty." 
 
 Share (n) In, Of, (v) With, Among, Between, In. 
 
 In, Of, — A portion of something; an allot- 
 ted part of something divided; as: 
 
 . . . they expected I should let them have 
 a share of everything I had. — Pococke, 
 
HOW TO USE IT 143 
 
 **I have a share in the business/' 
 With, — Divide ; partake of ; as : 
 **He will share his last dollar tuith a 
 friend. ' ' 
 
 . . . and share the crops with his landlord. 
 
 — Washburn, 
 
 Marcus Anrelius said he could relish no hap- 
 piness which nobody shared ivith him. — Collier, 
 
 Among, Between. — Divide into portions ; dis- 
 tribute among several; as: 
 
 ^*She shared the apple between the two 
 children. ' ' 
 
 **The estate was shared evenly among the 
 five sons." 
 
 In, — Participate. 
 
 *^You must share in my good fortune." 
 
 Sick For, Of, With. 
 
 For, — Pining; as: 
 
 Sick as an autumn swallow /or a voyage. 
 
 — Tennyson, 
 
 Of, — Disgusted from satiety; as: 
 The commonwealth is sick of its own choice. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
 Of, With, — 111; seriously indisposed. See 
 111, 
 
 Simon's wife's mother lay sick of fever. 
 
 - —Mark i, 30, 
 
 Behold them that are sick with famine. 
 
 — Jer. xiv. 18, 
 
 In England there is a tendency to confine 
 sick to the distinctive sense of nauseated; but 
 in America the word still retains its broadest 
 sense. 
 
144 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Significant Of. 
 
 Serving as a sign or indication ; as : 
 ^^Her attitude was significant of despair/' 
 
 Silhouette On, Against. 
 
 Make or bring out a shaded profile or out- 
 line view of; as: 
 
 A flock of roosting vultures, silhouetted on 
 the sky.— G. W, Cable. 
 
 He stood silhouetted against the flaming 
 Eastern sky alone. — 8. J, Duncan, 
 Similar To. 
 
 Like, but not completely identical ; as : 
 
 The dresses of the female slaves are similar 
 to those of the Egyptian women. — E. W. Lane, 
 Similarity Of, To, Between. 
 
 Hardly is there a similarity detected between 
 two or three facts, than men hasten to extend 
 it to all. — Sir W, Hamilton, 
 
 It is plain that in finding out the similarities 
 of things, we analyse. — J. Sully. 
 Simplicity Of, In. 
 
 The state or quality of being simple ; as : 
 
 The simplicity of the universe is very dif- 
 ferent from the simplicity of a machine. 
 
 — Emerson. 
 
 There was in the ancient church a great 
 simplicity in their creeds. — Gilbert Burnet. 
 Sink Into, In, Beneath. 
 
 To fall or decline by the force of gravity; 
 specifically to become submerged in deep water ; 
 as: 
 
 * ' A stone sinks in water. ' ' 
 
 Let these sayings sink down into your ears. 
 
 — Luke ix. 44. 
 
 **He sank beneath the waves.'' 
 
HOW TO USE IT 145 
 
 Sit On, Upon, In, For, With. 
 On, Upon. — Occupy a seat; hold a session 
 
 regarding ; figuratively anything assumed, as an 
 
 air, appearance, opinion, or habit ; as : 
 ^ ^ She was sitting on sl bench in the park. ' ' 
 ^*The coroner's jury sat on the case.'' 
 Her little air of precision sits so well upon 
 
 her. — Scott, 
 
 In, — Be located or situated, as : 
 Love sits in her smile. — Burns. 
 
 Situated On, In. 
 
 Located; as: 
 
 ^^ Albany is situated in the state of New 
 York.'' 
 
 Asuncion is charmingly situated on gently 
 undulating ground. — T. Child. 
 Skilful, Skilful At, In. 
 
 Having ability in a specified direction ; as : 
 
 ^^She was skilful at the organ, and also in 
 drawing. ' ' 
 Smile On, Upon, At. 
 
 Show approval in any way; an incipient 
 laugh, generally indicative of pleasure but some- 
 times of depreciation or contempt ; as : 
 
 * * May Heaven smile on our work. ' ' 
 
 . . . Mr. Great-heart . . . smiled upon 
 his companions. — Bunyan. 
 
 That could be moved to smile at anything. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Smile at the claims of long descent, — Ten- 
 nyson. 
 Snap At. 
 
 To make a snatch; accept gladly and 
 promptly; as: 
 
146 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 We snap at the bait without ever dreaming 
 
 of the hook that goes along with it. 
 
 — Sir R. L' Estrange. 
 Snatch At. 
 
 To seize or attempt to seize a thing suddenly ; 
 as: 
 
 Snatch not at every favor. — Sir T. Brown. 
 Soak In, With. 
 
 In, — To lie in and become saturated with 
 water or some other liquid ; as : 
 
 ''Soak the bread in the broth.'' 
 
 With, — To flood ; saturate ; as : 
 
 ^^His clothing was soaked with rain.'' 
 Salicitous Ahout, Concerning, For, less frequently Of, To. 
 
 About, Concerning, — Concerned; uneasy; as: 
 
 *^I am not at all solicitous about (or concern- 
 ing) it." 
 
 For, Of, — Anxious to obtain ; as : 
 
 **He was solicitous for my advice." 
 
 You are solicitous of the good-will of the 
 meanest person. — Emerson, 
 
 To. — Desirous; as: 
 
 The colonel had been . . . 
 
 Not enough solicitous to finish the fortifica- 
 tions. — Clarendon. 
 
 Sorry For. 
 Grieved; as: 
 I am sorry for thee, friend. — Shakespeare, 
 
 Speak For, Against, With, To, On, Upon, About. 
 For, Against, — To make an oral address ; as : 
 Lord Sandwich spoke for the treaty. 
 
 — Walpole. 
 **He spoke against the measure." 
 With, To. — Talk; converse; as: 
 Would you speak with me? — Shakespeare. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 147 
 
 ' * They do not speak to each other. ' ' 
 
 Ovif Upon, About. — A subject; as: 
 
 '*He spoke at length on the tariff question. '' 
 
 **He spoke about that matter this morning.'^ 
 
 speculate On, In, About. 
 
 On, About, — Meditate; theorize; form con- 
 jectures ; as : 
 
 They moralize and speculate about eternity. 
 
 — Robertson. 
 
 I certainly take my full share ... in 
 speculating on what has been done. . . . 
 
 — Burke. 
 
 In. — Make an outlay in the hope of probable 
 gain; as: 
 **He speculates in stocks.'' 
 
 Spoil Of. 
 
 Plunder ; strip by violence ; as : 
 
 Spoiled of his kingdom, and deprived of 
 eyes. — Pope. 
 
 Spy Into, upon. 
 Into. — To search narrowly; as: 
 It is my nature's plague to spy into abuses. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Upon. — Keep watch closely and secretly ; as : 
 This evening I will spy upon the bishop. 
 
 — Donne. 
 Square With, By. 
 
 With. — To accord or agree exactly ; as : 
 
 **His logic squares ivith the facts." 
 
 By. — To reduce to any given measure or 
 
 standard; regulate; as: 
 Why needs Sordello square his course by any 
 
 known example? — Browning. 
 
148 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Starve For. 
 
 Suffer for lack of anything ; as : 
 
 I . . , starve for a merry look. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 steep In. 
 
 To imbue or impregnate as with a specified 
 influence; cause to become permeated or per- 
 vaded with ; as : 
 
 Is this a time to steep 
 Thy brains in wasteful slumbers'? 
 
 — Quarles, 
 
 Thou art so steeped in misery, 
 
 Surely 'twere better not to be. 
 
 — Tennyson, 
 strip Of. 
 
 Deprive of covering ; rob ; as : 
 
 * ^ Lightening stripped the tree of its bark. ' ' 
 
 **He was stripped of all his possessions.'' 
 
 strive With, For, Against. 
 
 Struggle with or against that which opposes, 
 for that which is desired ; as : 
 
 ^^ Strive for the truth." 
 
 Striving with love and hate, with life and 
 death. — William Morris. 
 
 Against the Deity 'tis hard to strive. — Prior. 
 With. — To vie; to oppose by contrariety of 
 qualities ; as : 
 
 . . . the inspired 
 Castalian spring, might with this Paradise of 
 Eden strive. — Milton. 
 
 Now private pity strove with public hate, 
 Eeason with rage, and eloquence with fate. 
 
 — Sir J. Denham, 
 
HOW TO USE IT 149 
 
 Stumble On, Upon. 
 
 To come accidentally or unexpectedly ; as : 
 On what evil day 
 Has he then stumhledf 
 
 — William Morris, 
 
 Chance sometimes, in experimenting, maketh 
 us to stumble upon somewhat which is new. 
 
 — Bacon, 
 
 Subject To. 
 
 (N.) Exposed, liable; prone, exposed or 
 liable, as to what may confirm or modify; as: 
 
 My Lord, . . . this makes you more sub- 
 ject to envy. — Howell, 
 
 "The books will be sent subject to your ap- 
 proval. ' ' 
 
 The Greeks were subjected to the Eomans. 
 
 ^*The student was subjected to an examina- 
 tion." 
 
 (V.). — To expose or make liable; cause to 
 undergo ; subdue ; as : 
 
 ^* Credulity subjects one to impositions. ' ' 
 
 Submit To. 
 
 Yield; as: 
 
 The Mahometans . . . with one consent 
 submitted to the tribute imposed upon them. 
 
 — Bruce, 
 
 Subscribe For, To, Towards. 
 
 Promise a certain sum for a special purpose ; 
 to give consent ; as : 
 
 **We subscribe for a daily paper.'' 
 ^*He subscribed $500 to the building fund.'' 
 Nothing . . . would induce him to sub- 
 scribe toivards the expenses. — Dickens, 
 
 W6 will all subscribe to thy advice. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
150 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Note. — We subscribe for a paper but speak 
 of our subscription to it. 
 
 Subsist On, In. 
 
 On. — To be maintained ; live ; as : 
 Had it been our sad lot to subsist on other 
 men^s charity. — Atterbury. 
 
 In. — To have existence in ; as : 
 The Universal Cause . . . makes hap- 
 piness. . . . 
 Subsist, not in the good of one, but all. — Pope, 
 
 Substitute For. 
 
 Put in exchange ; as : 
 
 For real wit he is obliged to substitute vivac- 
 ity. — Goldsmith. 
 
 Subversion Of. ^ 
 
 Overthrow ; utter ruin ; as : 
 
 Laws have been often abused to the . . . 
 subversion of that order they were intended to 
 preserve. — Rogers. 
 
 Sufficient For. 
 
 Adequate, enough ; as : 
 
 *^This is sufficient for my purpose.'' 
 
 Suffuse With. 
 
 With. — Fill or cover ; as : 
 Hers was a face suffused with the fine essence 
 of beauty. — L. Winthrop. 
 
 ^*Her eyes were suffused with tears." 
 
 Suitable To, For. 
 
 To. — Conformable ; proper ; as ; 
 For his outward habit, 
 'Tis suitable to his present course of life. 
 
 — Fletcher. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 151 
 
 For, — Fit or adapted for a specified purpose ; 
 as: 
 
 **The building is suitable for a library." 
 Superior In, To. 
 
 In, — Greater in some quality ; as : 
 
 The French were superior in the number and 
 condition of their cavalry. — Prescott. 
 
 To. — Surpassing something or someone in 
 greatness; beyond the power or influence of 
 something ; as : 
 
 Nor do I know anything in ivory carving 
 superior to the panels of the tomb itself. 
 
 — C. D. Warner. 
 
 That I may read, and ride, and plant, 
 Superior to Desire, or Want. — Prior. 
 
 Supply With. 
 
 Provide ; as : 
 
 The day supplieth us with truths; the night 
 with fictions and falsehoods. — Sir T. Browne. 
 
 **The army was well supplied with ammuni- 
 tion.'' 
 Surcharge With. 
 
 Overload ; as : 
 
 The air, surcharged with moisture, flagg'd 
 around. — Crabbe. 
 
 Sure Of. 
 
 Certain to find or retain ; as : 
 
 I never can requite thee but with love. 
 And that thou shalt be sure of. 
 
 Beau, and Fl. 
 
 Surprise At, By, With, Into. 
 
 'At. — To strike with sudden astonishment; as: 
 **We were surprised at the unexpected turn 
 of affairs." 
 
152 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 By. — To come upon unexpectedly ; as : 
 The general-in-chief . . . was on the 
 point of being surprised by the rebel forces. 
 
 — A. Alison, Jr. 
 
 With, — The sudden presentation of some ob- 
 ject; as: 
 
 *^She was surprised with a beautiful diamond 
 brooch. ' ' 
 
 Into, — To lead unaware; as: 
 
 **He was surprised into a full avowal.'^ 
 
 Surround By, With. 
 
 To encompass; to place something around; 
 as: 
 
 On arriving we were surrounded by a crowd 
 of Arabs. — Lady Brassey, 
 
 The imagination of the savage surrounds life 
 with an atmosphere of awe and mystery. 
 
 — E, J. Glave. 
 
 **By" is used when the verb is in the passive 
 voice, **with/' when the verb has an object. 
 
 Susceptible Of, To. 
 
 Of. — Capable of being affected ; as : 
 It shed on souls susceptible of light 
 The glorious dawn of an eternal day. 
 
 — Young. 
 
 To, Of. — The agency which affects ; as : 
 **He is very susceptible to flattery.'^ 
 Hill, . . . was infinitely too susceptible 
 of criticism. — D' Israeli. 
 
 In strict usage ** susceptible'' is used only of 
 that which is acted on ; * ^ capable, ' ' of that which 
 has either power of receptivity. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 
 
 153 
 
 Bwerve From. 
 
 Deviate from any line, rule, or course ; as : 
 
 ^^The bullet swerved from the mark.'' 
 
 No threatening tyrant's darkling brow 
 
 Can swerve him from his just intent. 
 
 — Byron. 
 Sympathize With, In. 
 
 To be affected with feelings corresponding to 
 the feelings of another ; feel with another ; as : 
 
 ^^The true critic must sympathize with the 
 author. ' ' 
 
 Their countrymen sympathized with their 
 heroes in all their adventures. — Addison, 
 
 Sympathy For, With, Between. 
 
 For. — A feeling of compassion for another's 
 sufferings ; as : 
 
 In order to awaken something of sympathy 
 for the unfortunate natives. — Burke. 
 
 With J Bettveen. — Harmony ; accord ; an agree- 
 ment of affections or inclinations ; as : 
 
 ^^They are in sympathy ivith each other." 
 ^^ There is perfect sympathy between them." 
 
 Synopsis Of. 
 
 A summary or brief statement giving a gen- 
 eral view of some subject ; as : 
 
 I shall here draw up a short synopsis of this 
 epistle. — Warhurton. 
 
 Tally With. 
 
 Conform; agree; as: 
 
 I found pieces of tiles that exactly tallied 
 with the channel. — Addison, 
 
 On one point Mrs. Holt's plaint tallied with 
 his own forebodings. — George Eliot. 
 
154 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Tamper Witli. 
 
 Experiment rashly ; meddle ; interfere, as for 
 the purpose of alteration; use corrupt meas- 
 ures ; as : 
 Yet scarce I praise their venturous part 
 .Who tamper with such dangerous art. 
 
 —Scott. 
 
 Vain minds would still be tampering with the 
 greatest affairs. — Leighton, 
 
 We do not blame the ingenious author . . . 
 for her tampering with the original text. 
 
 — Academy. 
 
 Some meddling rogue has tampered with him. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 Target For. 
 
 Figuratively, anything at which observation 
 is aimed; as: 
 
 They to whom my foolish passion were a 
 target for their scorn. — Tennyson. 
 
 Taste Of For. 
 
 Of (Verb). — Have a particular flavor; take 
 sparingly; have perception; experience; as: 
 
 ^'The milk tastes of garlic. *' 
 
 Yea, every idle, nice, and wanton reason 
 
 Shall to the king taste of this action. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 For age but tastes of pleasures, youth de- 
 vours. — Dryden. 
 
 Cowards die many times before their deaths ; 
 The valiant never taste of death but once. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 For (noun). — Intellectual discernment; pre- 
 dilection, as : 
 
 Locke had no taste for fiction. — Leigh Hunt, 
 
HOW TO USE IT 155 
 
 Tax With, For. 
 
 With, — Accuse ; charge ; as : 
 
 Essex taxed his perfidious friend with un- 
 kindness and insincerity. — Macaulay, 
 
 For, — Levy money or other contributions 
 from; as: 
 
 *^ Property holders are taxed for street im- 
 provements. ' ' 
 Teem With. 
 
 Prolific or abundantly fertile, filled to over- 
 flowing; as: 
 
 The Latin language teems with sounds 
 adapted to every situation. — Goldsmith, 
 Tend To, Toward. 
 
 To. — Exert an influence in a certain direction 
 or toward a certain end ; conduce ; as : 
 
 ** Exercise tends to strengthen the muscles. '* 
 
 ** Education tends to refinement.'' 
 
 To, Toivard. — To move in a certain direc- 
 tion ; as : 
 
 The clouds above me to the white Alps tend, 
 
 — Byron, 
 
 ''He tended toward the mountain." 
 Tend On, Upon. 
 
 Attend ; serve ; as : 
 
 O I that wasted time to tend upon her. 
 
 — Tennyson, 
 Was he not companion with the riotous knights 
 That tend upon my father! — Shakespeare, 
 Tender Of, Over. 
 
 Careful ; solicitous ; watchful ; as : 
 
 Get once a good Name, and be very tender of 
 it afterwards. — Howell, 
 
 So tender over his occasions, true, 
 So feat, so nurse-like. — Shakespeare, 
 
156 THE CORKECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Terminate In, At, With. 
 In. — To be limited by a boundary ; end ; as : 
 . . . and terminates in two round cul-de-sacs. 
 
 — Owen, 
 At, With. — Cease; end; come to an end in 
 
 time; as: 
 
 ''The torrid zone terminates at the tropics." 
 Human aid and human solace terminate at 
 
 the grave. — D. Webster. 
 
 The festival terminated at the morning-call to 
 prayer. — E. W. Lane. 
 
 * ' The history of the Conquest of Mexico ter- 
 minates ivith the surrender of the capital.'' 
 
 Thankful For. 
 
 Impressed with a sense of kindness re- 
 ceived; as: 
 
 ''We should be thankful for benefits re- 
 ceived. ' ' 
 
 Thick With. 
 
 Abounding; filled ; as : 
 
 The air was thick with falling snow. — Bryant. 
 
 She looked up at Eve, her eyes thick with 
 tears. — Harper's Magazine. 
 Think Of, On, About. 
 
 To exercise the intellect as in apprehension, 
 judgment, or inference ; meditate ; as : 
 
 "He thought long on the subject before he 
 spoke.'' 
 
 . . . Vanity relates to what we would have 
 others think of us. — Jane Austen. 
 
 He left the world still thinking on his name. 
 
 — William Morris. 
 
 "I have been thinking about going." 
 
 Of. — To imagine ; fasten the mind on ; enter- 
 tain a sentiment or opinion ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 157 
 
 'Tis their misfortune not to have thought of 
 a remedy. — Lister, 
 
 ' ' I think very highly of his abilities. ' ' 
 That we can at any moment think of the same 
 thing which at any former moment we thought 
 of is the ultimate law of our intellectual consti- 
 tution. — W . James. 
 
 Thirst For, After. 
 
 To have a vehement desire ; crave ; as : 
 Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst 
 after righteousness. — Mat, v, 6, 
 
 He thirsted for all liberal knowledge. 
 
 — Milton. 
 Threaten With, To (infinitive). By. 
 
 Menace ; as : 
 
 And threatened me with death. — Shakespeare. 
 
 To. — To announce or hold out as a pen- 
 alty ; as : 
 ' He threatened to detain us. — Pococke. 
 
 By. — That which menaces ; as : 
 ^'They were threatened by the guard." 
 
 Tincture With. 
 
 Flavor ; impregnate ; season ; as : 
 
 Early were our minds tinctured with a dis- 
 tinguishing sense of good and evil. 
 
 — Bp, Atterhury. 
 Tinge With. 
 
 To imbue slightly with something foreign; 
 impart a tint to; vary the tone or bent of; 
 modify by infusion ; as : 
 
 The civilization of New England . . . tinges 
 the distant horizon with its glow. 
 Words . . . serene, 
 
 Yet tinged with infinite desire. — M, Arnold. 
 
158 THE COEKECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Tire Of, With, By. 
 
 Of. — To become weary ; as : 
 
 I often grew 
 Tired of so much within our little life. 
 
 — Tennyson, 
 
 With, — Exhaust the patience of ; as : 
 
 He tires his favorites with Irene's praise. 
 
 — 8, Johnson. 
 
 By. — Eeduce the strength of hy some means ; 
 as: 
 
 Crops that tire and exhaust the soil by ripen- 
 ing their seeds, must alternate with restful 
 roots and herbage. — B. D, Hitchcock, 
 Touch At, On, Upon. 
 
 At. — To make a passing call, as a ship on a 
 voyage ; as : 
 
 The next day we touched at Sidon. 
 
 — Acts xxvii. 3. 
 
 On, Upon, — To mention or treat something 
 slightly in discourse ; as : 
 
 As soon as he hath touched on any science or 
 study, he immediately seems to himself to have 
 mastered it. — Bp. Atterhury. 
 
 If the antiquaries have touched upon it, they 
 have immediately quitted it. — Addison. 
 Trample On, Upon. 
 
 Tread down, literally or figuratively ; as : 
 . . . but that thou shouldst be trampled on 
 because thou didst iU—Bp. Atterhury, 
 
 Diogenes trampled on Plato's pride. 
 
 I trample on your offers and on you. 
 
 — Tennyson. 
 Transfer From, To, Unto, Into (sometimes On, Upon). 
 
 To convey from one place or person to an- 
 other ; as : 
 
HOW TO USE IT 159 
 
 '*He transferred the blame from his shoul- 
 ders to mine." 
 The war being now transferred into Mnnster. 
 
 — Camden. 
 
 . . . and transferred the honour of it upon 
 themselves. — Bp. Atterhury, 
 
 Translate Into, From. 
 
 Eender into another language ; present in an- 
 other form ; as : 
 
 ^^He translated the book from French into 
 English.'' 
 
 Translating into his own clear, pure, and 
 flowing language. — Macaulay. 
 
 Transmit From, To. ♦ 
 
 Communicate ; as : 
 
 Whatever they learn and know is transmitted 
 from one to another. — Bacon. 
 
 Tread On, Upon. 
 
 To trample ; follow closely ; as : 
 
 ^^They tread softly upon the soft ground." 
 
 Year treads on year. — Wordsworth. 
 
 Treat Of, With. 
 
 Of. — To discourse ; as : 
 
 First, we treat of Dress. — Congreve, 
 
 With. — Negotiate ; as : 
 
 * ^ Envoys were appointed to treat with 
 France. ' ' 
 
 Trench On, Upon. 
 
 Encroach upon ; as : 
 
 Madame, I am bold 
 To trench so far upon your privacy. 
 
 — Massinger. 
 
160 THE CORRECT PREPOSITION: 
 
 Trend Of. 
 
 A general course or direction; an ultimate 
 inclination ; as : 
 
 Owing to the westerly trend of the val- 
 ley. . . . — The Century. 
 
 What can support the dogma against the 
 trend of Scripture! — Bihliotheca Sacra, 
 Trespass On, Upon, Against. 
 
 On, Upon. — Violate wilfully and forcibly the 
 personal or property rights of another; in- 
 trude ; as : 
 
 ^^The poacher was found trespassing on the 
 squire's property." 
 
 Against — Offend; sin; break a rule or cus- 
 tom; as: 
 
 Ye shall even warn them that trespass not 
 against the Lord. — 2 CJiron. xix. 10. 
 
 ^^He trespassed against fashion." 
 Trifle With. 
 
 To treat a thing as of no value or importance ; 
 jest; as: 
 
 And trifle not with danger that attends you. 
 
 — Fletcher. 
 Do not believe 
 
 I thus would play and trifle with your reverence. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 Triumph Over. 
 
 Gain a victory ; prevail ; exult or boast ; as : 
 Triumphing over Death, and Chance, and 
 thee, Time.— Milton. 
 
 True To. 
 
 Conformable to reality or fact, or to a rule, 
 standard, or pattern ; faithful ; loyal ; as : 
 A translation nicely true to the original. 
 
 — Arhuthnot. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 161 
 
 He was . . . true to church and king. 
 
 — Macaulay. 
 
 Trust In, To, With, On. 
 
 In, — To place or repose confidence in ; as : 
 Trust in the Lord, and do good. — Ps, xxxvii, 3. 
 
 To, — Depend or rely on ; as : 
 The mouse that trusts to one poor hole. — 
 Pope, 
 
 TFi^/i.^-To intrust ; as : 
 Whom with you power and fortune, sir, yon 
 trust. — Dryden. 
 
 On, — Eely ; as : 
 
 Her widening streets on new foundations 
 trust, — Dryden, 
 
 Turn On, Upon, From, To, Into. 
 
 On, Upon, — Figuratively, to move as on a 
 point of support; hinge; confront in a hostile 
 manner; as: 
 
 * ' The question tufns upon this point. ' ' 
 A playfulness that turned on her supposed 
 oddity was not at all to Maggie ^s taste. 
 
 — George Eliot, 
 
 Pompey turned upon him again. — Bacon, 
 
 On. — To move round ; as : 
 
 The gate on golden hinges turning, — Milton, 
 
 From, — To be deflected ; as : 
 ^^He turned from his evil ways.'' 
 To. — Change; be directed toward ; tend; re- 
 sult; as: 
 
 ** Water turns to ice." 
 I believed that it might turn to his profit. 
 
 — Evelyn, 
 
162 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Into. — Be transformed ; as : 
 
 Those two blush-roses [on a girPs cheeks] 
 . . . turned into a couple of damasks. 
 
 — 0. W. Holmes, 
 Tyrannize Over. 
 
 Rule despotically or cruelly; maintain arbi- 
 trary control ; as : 
 
 Nor . . . shall fear be able to tyrannize over 
 us. — Hooker, 
 Tyranny Of. 
 
 Arbitrary exercise of power ; despotic abuse 
 of authority ; as : 
 
 The tyranny of wealthy and powerful sub- 
 jects was the characteristic evil of the times. 
 
 — Macaulay, 
 
 Unacquainted With. 
 
 Not acquainted ; not familiar ; as : 
 
 **I am unacquainted with him.'' 
 
 A good reader . . . never undertakes to read 
 in public a passage with which he is wholly 
 unacquainted. — J. H. McBvaine. 
 Unconcerned At, For, AboHt. 
 
 Want of concern ; indifference ; apathy ; not 
 interested ; as : 
 
 **He was unconcerned at the success of his 
 rival. ' ' 
 
 Happy mortals, unconcerned for more. 
 
 — Dry den. 
 
 *'He seems unconcerned about the future." 
 
 Unfavorable To, For. 
 
 To. — Adverse ; as : 
 
 *^The verdict was unfavorable to the pris- 
 oner. ' ' 
 For. — Not propitious ; as: ' 
 **The weather is unfavorable for planting/' 
 
HOW TO ¥8E IT 
 
 163 
 
 UBion Of. 
 
 Combination; as: 
 
 Out of the union of Eoman and Teutonic ele- 
 ments arose the modern world of Europe. 
 
 — E. A. Freeman. 
 Unison With. 
 
 Agreement ; harmony ; as : 
 
 I had the good fortune to act in perfect uni- 
 son with my colleague. — D, Webster, 
 Iffnite To, With, In, By. 
 
 To, With, — Combine so as to form one ; as : 
 
 Your troops of horsemen unite with his bands 
 of foot. — Shakespeare, 
 
 As thou hast united our nature to thy eternal 
 being. — Jer, Taylor, 
 
 By, — Connect ; join together ; as : 
 
 *^The two families are united by marriage.'' 
 
 In. — Act in concert ; as : 
 
 *^A11 united in signing the petition." 
 Unmindful Of. 
 
 Eegardless ; heedless ; as : 
 
 For not unmindful of thee are the gods. 
 
 — M, Arnold, 
 Unworthy Of. 
 
 Not deserving ; unbecoming ; as : 
 
 The most unworthy of her you call Eosalind. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 Something unworthy of the author. — Swift, 
 Useful To, For. 
 
 In, — 
 
 To, For.— Serving a use or purpose; bene- 
 ficial ; as : 
 
 Now blind, disheartened, sham'd, dishonored, 
 quelPd, 
 
 To what can I be useful. — Milton. 
 
 '* These things are useful for man." 
 
164 THE COERBCT PEEPO»ITIGN: 
 
 Value Of, On. 
 
 Worth ; estimated worth ; as : 
 
 The only value of universal characters is that 
 they help us to know new truths about individ- 
 ual things. — W. James. 
 
 Before events shall have decided on the value 
 of the measures. — Marshall. 
 
 And therefore sets this value on your life. 
 
 — Addison. 
 
 Variance With. 
 
 Difference ; disagreement ; as : 
 
 What cause brought him so soon at variance 
 with himself. — Milton. 
 
 Vary With, According to. From. 
 
 With. — Diversify; be characteristically sub- 
 ject to change ; as : 
 
 * ^ He varied his remarks with anecdotes. ' ' 
 ^^He varies with every new influence. *' 
 From, According to. — To be unlike or diverse 
 in details ; as : 
 
 '^The laws of one state vary from those of 
 another." 
 
 **The custom varies according to the time and 
 country." 
 
 Versed In. 
 
 Conversant ; skilled ; as : 
 
 Versed in all the arts which win the confi- 
 dence and affection of youth. — Macaulay, 
 
 He was thoroughly versed in forest life.— ^ 
 
 — W. G. Simms. 
 Vest With, In. 
 
 With. — Invest or clothe as with authority ; as : 
 Had I been vested with the monarch's power. 
 
 — Prior. 
 
HOW TO USE IT 165 
 
 In. — To commit to or confer upon one with 
 full right of possession or exercise ; as : 
 
 **The power to pardon is vested in the gov- 
 ernor/' 
 
 Vex With, At. 
 
 To make angry by little provocations ; annoy ; 
 as: 
 
 They that vex themselves with cares and 
 study. — Sir T, More. 
 
 There! you stumble on the stair and are 
 vexed at your own awkwardness. — G. W. Curtis, 
 
 Vibrant With. • 
 
 Tremulous; resonant; as: 
 Her voice was vibrant with feeling. 
 
 — C. D, Warner, 
 
 Vie With. 
 
 Strive for superiority ; as : 
 
 Gold furze with broom in blossom vies. 
 
 — M. Arnold. 
 
 View Of, To. 
 
 Of. — Survey ; inspection ; mental examina- 
 tion ; as : 
 
 *^This is a just view 0/ the facts.'' 
 * ' This hill affords a fine view of the surround- 
 ing country. ' ' 
 
 To, 0/.— Intention ; as : 
 ^ ^ All was planned with a view to conquest. ' ' 
 ^^She went there with a view to finding out 
 (or with the view of finding out) what could be 
 done. ' ' 
 
 Vindication Of. 
 
 A justification against objections or accusa- 
 tions ; as : 
 
 This is no vindication of her conduct. 
 
 — Broome, 
 
166 THE GOEEECT PEEPOSITION: 
 
 Void Of. 
 
 Being without ; lacking ; as : 
 
 He that is void of wisdom despiseth his neigh- 
 bor. — Prov. xi. 12. 
 
 Vouch For. 
 
 Bear witness ; as : 
 
 I dare swear the lady will vouch for every 
 article of it. — Sheridan, 
 Wait On, Upon, For. 
 
 On, Upon, — To attend upon as a servant; to 
 go to see ; to attend or follow as a consequence ; 
 be associated with ; accompany ; as : 
 
 I must wait on myself, must I! 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
 I have been twice to wait upon Dr. Brady. 
 
 — Edmond Gibson. 
 
 Now, good digestion wait on appetite. 
 And health on both. — Shakespeare, 
 Such silence waits on Philomena's strains. 
 
 — Pope. 
 
 Yet a rich guerdon waits on minds that dare. 
 
 — Wordsworth. 
 
 That ruin that waits on such a supine temper. 
 
 — D. H. Moore. 
 
 For, — Be in expectation ; stand in readiness ; 
 rest in patience until a favorable opportunity 
 arrives ; as : 
 
 Both prayed for the acceleration of that for 
 which they waited, — Donne, 
 
 ** Patriots wait for the call of their country.'' 
 
 *^The thief waits for a chance to steal.'' 
 
 Weary Of, With, For, To, In. 
 
 Of, With. — Tire; impatient of; become fa- 
 tigued; as: 
 
HOW TO USE IT 167 
 
 '*I weary with my walk.'' 
 '*I weary of their talk." 
 I have even wearied heaven with my prayers. 
 For, — To long ; as : 
 ^*The exile is wearying for home." 
 In, — Eelax one's efforts ; as : 
 **We should not weary in doing good." 
 Weep For, With, At. 
 
 For. — Shed tears in grief ; as: 
 
 Eachel weeping for her children. 
 
 With, — Weep in sympathy ; as : 
 
 **I weep with you in your hour of trial." 
 
 At, — That which makes one weep ; as : 
 
 * ' I could but weep at his sudden downfall. ' ' 
 
 Weigh With, Upon. 
 
 With,—E.siWQ weight in the intellectual bal- 
 ance ; as : 
 
 He finds that the same argument which 
 weighs with him has weighed with thousands 
 before him. — Bp. Atterbury, 
 
 Upon, — Bear heavily ; as : 
 Cleanse the stuff 'd bosom of that perilous stuff 
 Which weighs upon the heart. — Shakespeare. 
 Wince Under, At. 
 
 To shrink, as in pain or from a blow: liter- 
 ally or figuratively ; as : 
 
 Some fretful tempers wince at every touch. 
 
 — Cowper. 
 
 Philip winced under this allusion to his unfit- 
 ness for active sports. — George Eliot, 
 Witness Of, To. 
 
 Of. — Testimony ; evidence ; as : 
 
 If I bear witness of myself, my 'v^itness is not 
 true. — John v. 31, 
 
 To, — One who or that which bears testi- 
 mony ; as : 
 
168 THE COEEECT PEEPOSITION; 
 
 Your mother lives a witness to that vow. 
 
 — Shakespeare, 
 
 Worthy Of, To (infinitive). 
 
 Deserving ; as : 
 
 Epaminondas, amongst the Thebans, is 
 worthy of note and memory. — Ford, 
 
 I never heard 
 Sounds such as these, so worthy to be feared. 
 
 — Cowper. 
 
 Wrap Around, About, In, With. 
 
 Around, About. — To fold, or draw together, 
 as a cloth, so as to protect or enclose some- 
 thing; as: 
 
 *'She wrapped a shawl around the child.'* 
 Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch 
 About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams. 
 
 — Bryant. 
 
 In, With. — Infold, envelop ; conceal ; as : 
 The buildings in one quarter of the town were 
 speedily wrapt in flames. — Prescott. 
 
 "Wise poets that wrap truth in tales. — Carew, 
 
 Yearn For. 
 
 Desire something anxionsly ; as : 
 
 But my heart would still yearn for the sound 
 of the waves. — 0. W, Holmes. 
 
 Yield To. 
 
 Give way ; cease opposing ; as : 
 
 There is a noble nature in man that . . . 
 yields softly to rectitude and justice. 
 
 — Edward Irving. 
 Yoke With. 
 
 To couple ; to join with another ; as : 
 Cassius, you are yoked with a lamb. 
 
 — Shakespeare. 
 
HOW TO USE IT • 169 
 
 Zealous For, In. 
 
 For, — ^'ull of zeal; jealous for the good or 
 the promotion of some object ; as : 
 
 ^*He was zealous for the interests of the 
 state. ' ' 
 
 In. — Warmly engaged; as: 
 
 He may be zealous in the salvation of souls. 
 
 — Low, 
 
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