Preposition: Of

1. Of indicates belonging or connection.     

    a. Of identifies a thing as a connection or part of another thing.
the pages of the book
the leaves of the tree

b. Of identifies people, animals, or plants as part of a larger group.

Pattern: noun + of + this/that + noun

the women of that family
the people of that religion
                                           

Nouns commonly used after of:
city, club, company, country, culture, descent, faith, family, gender, genus, group, ilk, organization, race, religion, society, species                                                                                                                      

    c. Of identifies ideas or works with their author, artist, or composer.                                                                                          

Pattern: noun + of + noun
the works of Shakespeare
the methods of the teacher
                  

Nouns often used before of:
essays, ideas, method, music, novels, opinion, paintings, plays, poems, poetry, songs, work, writing                      

    d. Of identifies an individual or special member of a group or institution.                                                                                 

Pattern: noun + of + noun
the president of the class
the coordinators of the program
                      

Nouns commonly used before of:
captain, citizen, coordinator, dictator, head, hero, heroine, leader, loser, manager, mayor, member, president, secretary, servant, star, student, teacher, treasurer, villain, winner                                                          

    e. Of identifies a person's occupation or area of specialization.                                                                                              

Pattern: noun + of + noun
a professor of mathematics
students of cardiology
practitioner of medicine
                                  

    f. Of indicates a connection with a place.            

Pattern: noun + of + noun
a native of Alaska
the birds and animals of Australia
                               

Nouns often used before of:
animal, bird, citizen, graduate, inhabitant, native, people, resident                             

    g. Of indicates a connection with a period of time.
the music of the eighties
the dances of her youth
the fourth of July
                                   

the last day of the year
April of last year
              

2. Of can name another noun.             

Pattern: the + noun + of + noun
They established the city of Los Angeles.
It is near the Bay of Bengal.
I don't know the name of the school.
              

3. Of can indicate the location of a part.                 

Pattern: preposition + the + noun + of + noun
The passage is in the middle of the page.
I have a knot on the back of my head.
The numbers are at the top of the page.
                      

4. Of indicates a category of description.             

Pattern: noun + of + noun                     

    1. Typical nouns used before of indicating category:
brand, category, class, color, form, kind, make, pattern, shape, size, sort, style, type
What kind of shoes are you looking for?
The color of your dress is beautiful.
                                                                                        

    2. Nouns used before of indicating type of container:
bag, bowl, box, can, container, load, loaf, package, piece, plate, tube
We bought two boxes of cereal.
                                                                                   

    3. Nouns used before of indicating sensation:
feel, sense, smell, sound, taste, texture
I didn't like the smell of that meat.
                                           

    4. Nouns before of indicating value:
cost, price, value
The price of the dress was outrageous.
                       

    5. Nouns before of indicating measurement:
depth, height, length, measurement, weight, width
Do you know the measurement of your waist?
                                     

    5. Of indicates a number or proportion.                

Pattern 1: number/adjective + of + plural noun
Three of the girls are our daughters.
All of the women are from New York.
                          

Adjectives used before of:
all numbers
all, another, any, both, each, either, enough, few, many, most, neither, none,
plenty, several, some
                                                                                                  

Pattern 2: noun + of + plural noun
That store has a couple of books I want to buy.
A few of them are hard to find.
                               

Nouns used before of:
a couple, a few, a lot, lots        

Pattern 3: adjective + of + noncount noun
Much of the furniture is damaged.
                               

Adjectives used before of:
all, little, much, some             

Pattern 4: noun + of + noncount noun
A little of the information is correct.
A lot of it is incorrect.
                                      

Nouns used before of:
a little, a lot, lots                      

6. Of can identify abstract nouns by their source.              

    1. sound

Pattern: the + noun + of + noun
I heard the cry of a baby.
There was the noise of a car.
                           

Nouns of sound commonly used before of:
buzz, crash, cry, growl, hiss, howl, hum, hush, laughter, music, noise, silence, sound, whisper                   

    2. force                      

Pattern: noun + of + noun
A gust of wind blew in my face.
We all need a breath of fresh air.
                     

Nouns of force often used before of:
breath, gush, rush, whiff                                             

    3. sight                      

Pattern: noun + of + noun
She had a vision of musicians playing violins.
The blue of her eyes was the color of the ocean.
                     

Nouns of sight often used before of:
blue, color, picture, sight, vision                                

    4. sensation                     

Pattern: the + noun + of + noun
The touch of his hand made me feel safe.
The smell of bread baking was wonderful.
                  

Nouns of feeling often used before of:
feel, sense, smell, taste, texture, touch                        

 

    5. expression  

Pattern: noun + of + noun
He shouted words of anger.
She breathed a sigh of relief.
                           

Nouns of expression often used before of:
cry, groan, moan, sigh, shout, smile, tears, word                    

Nouns of feeling often used after of:
anger, anguish, delight, elation, excitement, fear, frustration, happiness, joy, relief, sadness, surprise                      

7. Of can indicate material or composition.                  

Pattern: noun + be + past participle + of + noun
My new bag is made of leather.
Water is made up of hydrogen and oxygen.
                             

Past participles used before of:
composed, formed, made, made up (used with natural phenomena)               

Nouns often used after of:
aluminum, brass, cardboard, clay, copper, cotton, crystal, fabric, glass, gold, iron, jute, leather, metal, nylon, paper, plastic, platinum, polyester, rayon, sand, silk, silver, string, tin, water, wire, wood, wool       

8. Of can identify contents or topic.                  

Pattern 1: noun + of + noun
She ate a salad of lettuce, tomatoes, and avocados.
My uncle wrote a book of short stories.
The book has pictures of flowers.
A group of students went to the museum.
                               

Common expressions:
words of love, a sign of weakness, a method of teaching                    

Pattern 2: verb + of + noun
I dreamed of you.
They often talked of their youth.
          

Verbs commonly used before of:
complain, dream, hear, learn, sing, speak, talk, think             

Pattern 3: verb + noun + of + noun
She informed me of my appointment.
             

Verbs used with this pattern:
advise, inform, remind, tell                 

Pattern 4: adjective + of + noun
She is capable of better work.
They are independent of their parents.
            

Adjectives commonly used with this pattern:
capable, ignorant, proud, repentant, sick, tired           

Expression:
be reminiscent of—to remind people of
Your perfume is reminiscent of my mother.     

9. Of can indicate dedication of time to a special purpose.

Pattern: noun + of + noun
That was a day of national mourning.
We stood for a moment of silence.
                  

Nouns often used before of:
day, moment, month, period, season, semester, time, week, year                   

Nouns often used after of:
celebration, exercise, festivity, fun, happiness, meditation, mourning, prayer, quiet, reading, reflection, rest, silence, studying, thanksgiving, work                                                                                                  

10. Of can indicate absence.                  

Pattern: noun + of + noun
There is a need of cooperation.
The lack of funds is our biggest problem.
       

Nouns commonly used before of:
absence, dearth, necessity, need, lack, paucity, scarcity                     

11. Of can indicate separation.                     

Pattern 1: verb + of + noun
He was cured of cancer.
The dog died of old age.
She is rid of a nuisance.
                      

Pattern 2: verb + noun + of + noun
They tried to relieve her of pain.
                      

Expressions:
to get rid of—to cause to no longer have
I got rid of my old car.
a change of scenery/pace—a change in place or activity
We needed a change of scenery, so we went to the Caribbean.           

12. Of can indicate one's feelings toward the object.                 

Pattern 1: noun + of + noun
We appreciate the pleasure of your company.
He has a love of learning.
                                            

Nouns often used before of:
anguish, challenge, delight, desire, distrust, enjoyment, excitement, fear, frustration, happiness, hatred, joy, love, need, pleasure, stress                                                                                                                       

Pattern 2: to the + noun + of + noun
We had a big party, to the delight of the children.
      

Nouns often used before of:
anguish, annoyance, delight, disgust, enjoyment, excitement, happiness, pleasure                

13. Of can indicate an attitude toward something.            

Pattern: be + adjective + of + noun
They are respectful of the environment.
          

Adjectives commonly used before of:
ashamed, aware, certain, conscious, disrespectful, envious, fond, inconsiderate, mindful, proud, repentant, respectful, sure, suspicious, trusting, uncertain, unsure, wary                                                                 

14. Of can indicate a reason.
I came here because of you.
She lost all her money on account of her husband.
                 

15. Of can describe behavior.             

Pattern: be + adjective + of + noun
It was very kind of Sally to help us.
It was cruel of him to ignore her.
                     

 Adjectives commonly used with this pattern:
bad, careless, conscientious, crazy, crude, cruel, delightful, evil, good, hateful, ignorant, irresponsible, kind, mean, nice, responsible, rude, selfish, sweet, thoughtful, thoughtless, typical, unconscionable                

16. Of can describe a noun by connecting it to a quality.      

Pattern: noun + of + noun
She is a woman of honor.
They are people of integrity.
                

Nouns of quality often used after of:
dignity, faith, few words, good intentions, honor, integrity, high (low) morals, strength, wisdom                   

17. Expression                      

right of way—the legal right to proceed before another person
The accident was the other driver's fault because I had the right of way.