MarMar Posted May 14, 2006 Report Posted May 14, 2006 It's actually quite easy: of Audio pronunciation of "of" ( P ) prep. 1. Derived or coming from; originating at or from: customs of the South. 2. Caused by; resulting from: a death of tuberculosis. 3. Away from; at a distance from: a mile east of here. 4. So as to be separated or relieved from: robbed of one's dignity; cured of distemper. 5. From the total or group comprising: give of one's time; two of my friends; most of the cases. 6. Composed or made from: a dress of silk. 7. Associated with or adhering to: people of your religion. 8. Belonging or connected to: the rungs of a ladder. 9. 1. Possessing; having: a person of honor. 2. On one's part: very nice of you. 10. Containing or carrying: a basket of groceries. 11. Specified as; named or called: a depth of ten feet; the Garden of Eden. 12. Centering on; directed toward: a love of horses. 13. Produced by; issuing from: products of the vine. 14. Characterized or identified by: a year of famine. 15. 1. With reference to; about: think highly of her proposals; will speak of it later. 2. In respect to: slow of speech. 16. Set aside for; taken up by: a day of rest. 17. Before; until: five minutes of two. 18. During or on a specified time: of recent years. 19. By: beloved of the family. 20. Used to indicate an appositive: that idiot of a driver. 21. Archaic. On: “A plague of all cowards, I say” (Shakespeare). [Middle English, from Old English. See apo- in Indo-European Roots.] Usage Note: Grammarians have sometimes objected to the so-called double genitive construction, as in a friend of my father's; a book of mine. But the construction has been used in English since the 14th century and serves a useful purpose. It can help sort out ambiguous phrases like Bob's photograph, which could refer either to a photograph of Bob (that is, revealing Bob's image) or to one in Bob's possession. A photograph of Bob's, can only be a photo that Bob has in his possession, which may or may not show Bob's image. Moreover, in some sentences the double genitive offers the only way to express what is meant. There is no substitute for it in a sentence such as That's the only friend of yours that I've ever met, since sentences such as That's your only friend that I've ever met and That's your only friend, whom I've ever met are awkward or inaccurate. vs. off Audio pronunciation of "off" ( P ) Pronunciation Key 1. From a place or position: drove off. 2. 1. At a certain distance in space or time: a mile off; a week off. 2. From a given course or route; aside: swerved off into a ditch. 3. Into a state of unconsciousness: I must have dozed off. 3. 1. So as to be no longer on, attached, or connected: shaved off his mustache. 2. So as to be divided: marked off the playing field by yards. 4. So as to be no longer continuing, operating, or functioning: switched off the radio. 5. So as to be completely removed, finished, or eliminated: kill off the mice. 6. So as to be smaller, fewer, or less: Sales dropped off. 7. So as to be away from work or duty: They took a day off. 8. Offstage. adj. 1. 1. Distant or removed; farther: the off side of the barn. 2. Remote; slim: stopped by on the off chance that they're home. 2. Not on, attached, or connected: with my shoes off. 3. Not operating or operational: The oven is off. 4. No longer taking place; canceled: The wedding is off. 5. Slack: Production was off this year. 6. 1. Not up to standard; below a normal or satisfactory level: Your pitching is off today. 2. Not accurate; incorrect: Your statistical results are off. 3. Somewhat crazy; eccentric: I think that person is a little off. 7. Started on the way; going: I'm off to see the president. 8. 1. Absent or away from work or duty: She's off every Tuesday. 2. Spent away from work or duty: My off day is Saturday. 9. 1. Being on the right side of an animal or vehicle. 2. Being the animal or vehicle on the right. 10. Nautical. Farthest from the shore; seaward. 11. Sports. Toward or designating the side of the field facing the batsman in cricket. 12. Off-color. prep. 1. So as to be removed or distant from: The bird hopped off the branch. 2. Away or relieved from: off duty. 3. 1. By consuming: living off locusts and honey. 2. With the means provided by: living off my pension. 3. Informal. From: “What else do you want off me?” (Jimmy Breslin). 4. Extending or branching out from: an artery off the heart. 5. Not up to the usual standard of: off his game. 6. So as to abstain from: went off narcotics. 7. Nautical. To seaward of: a mile off Sandy Hook. v. offed, off·ing, offs v. intr. To go away; leave: Off or I'll call the police. v. tr. Slang To murder. Idiom: off and on In an intermittent manner: slept off and on last night. [Variant of Middle English of, from Old English. See apo- in Indo-European Roots.] Usage Note: The compound preposition off of is generally regarded as informal and is best avoided in formal speech and writing: He stepped off (not off of) the platform. Off is informal as well when used to indicate a source: formal style requires I borrowed it from (not off) my brother. --- 'Of' is a preposition and used for genitiv (see examples). 'Off' can be both adverb, adjective and preposition, but when used as a preposition, it's the same as the Norwegian "av" (example with bird: Fuglen hoppet av grenen. 'Off' seems to be used when you talk about something being switched off, like a television or something, and as they write Off is informal as well when used to indicate a source: formal style requires I borrowed it from (not off) my brother. 'Of' is also "av" in Norwegian, but then it's used as a way to say, as you ask, property of...
Si-Co Posted May 14, 2006 Report Posted May 14, 2006 Hmm, picking up on 'off' and 'of'.... Take these two sentences.. (1) I recorded Home and Away off Channel Seven last night. (2) I recorded Home and Away off of Channel Seven last night. I would always use the former, in both speech and writing, however I increasingly see and hear people using the latter. Which is correct, or are both acceptable?
MarMar Posted May 14, 2006 Report Posted May 14, 2006 The compound preposition off of is generally regarded as informal and is best avoided in formal speech and writing: He stepped off (not off of) the platform. Off is informal as well when used to indicate a source: formal style requires I borrowed it from (not off) my brother. (Dictionary.com)
Si-Co Posted May 14, 2006 Report Posted May 14, 2006 ETA: Just found my answer above!! Usage Note: The compound preposition off of is generally regarded as informal and is best avoided in formal speech and writing: He stepped off (not off of) the platform. Off is informal as well when used to indicate a source: formal style requires I borrowed it from (not off) my brother. That will teach me to skim through long posts! However, where did this 'off of' expression come from?
MarMar Posted May 14, 2006 Report Posted May 14, 2006 'Of' --> used only in situation where you need a certain type of word behind it: "a man of honour". Off --> Turning something off, taking something off: "Taking off your clothes". Si: I don't know where "off of" came from, but the language is getting more and more informal, so people will use it more and more.
Si-Co Posted May 14, 2006 Report Posted May 14, 2006 Si: I don't know where "off of" came from, but the language is getting more and more informal, so people will use it more and more. To me, 'off of' sounds anything but 'informal', although it certainly doesn't sound right. As you posted above, I guess in most cases if there's a temptation to use 'off of' then the chances are the word 'from' is more appropriate than 'off'.
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