2.280 Prepositional phrases beginning with of can be used to say that something belongs to or is associated with someone or something.
Cental is a trademark of Monotore Ltd.
No.28 was the town house of Sir Winston Churchill.
James is the son of a Methodist minister.
The acting ability of the pupils is admirable.
…the beauty of the Welsh landscape.
Four boys sat on the floor of the living room.
Ellen aimlessly turned the pages of her magazine.
Note that apostrophe s (’s) structures are much more frequently used to say that something belongs to someone or something. Apostrophe s (’s) is explained in paragraphs 1.211 to 1.222.
2.281 Prepositional phrases beginning with of can be used to say that someone or something has a particular quality.
…a woman of energy and ambition.
…problems of varying complexity.
…a flower of monstrous proportions.
A household of this size inevitably has problems.
Of can also be used in front of a number to indicate someone’s age.
…a woman of twenty-two.
…a child of six.
Other ways of talking about age are explained in paragraphs 2.258 to 2.263.
2.282 Prepositional phrases beginning with of can be used with nouns referring to an action to show who or what is performing the action.
…the arrival of the police.
…the growth of modern industry.
They are also used to show who or what someone does something to. For example, if you are talking about people who support a scheme, you can call them the supporters of the scheme.
…supporters of the hunger strike.
…critics of the Trade Union Movement.
…the creator of the universe.
…a student of English.
…the cause of the tragedy.
Of structures are also used to indicate the thing affected by an action.
…the destruction of their city.
…the dismissal of hundreds of workers.
2.283 Prepositional phrases beginning with of and containing measurement are used to show how great an area, speed, distance, or temperature is.
There were fires burning over a total area of about 600 square miles.
It can barely maintain a speed of 25 kilometres an hour.
…an average annual temperature of 20°.
Ways of measuring things are explained in paragraphs 2.250 to 2.257.
with
2.284 Prepositional phrases beginning with with can be used to say that someone or something has a particular characteristic, feature, or possession.
…a girl with red hair.
…a girl with a foreign accent.
…a big car with reclining seats.
…a man with a violent temper.
…the man with the gun.
…those with large families.
They are also used to indicate what something has on or in it.
…a sheet of paper with writing on it.
…a round box with some buttons in it.
…a white, plain envelope with her name printed on it.
…fragments of wrapping paper with bits of sticky tape still adhering to them.
in
2.285 Prepositional phrases beginning with in can be used to say what someone is wearing.
…a grey-haired man in a raincoat.
…the man in the dark glasses.
…little groups of people in black.
by
2.286 Prepositional phrases beginning with by can be used after a noun referring to an action to say who or what is performing it.
…his appointment by the King.
…the compression of air by the piston.
with prepositional phrases
2.287 Some nouns, especially abstract nouns, need to be followed by a prepositional phrase to show what they relate to. There is often little or no choice about which preposition to use after a particular noun.
He has an allergy to peanuts.
…his authority over them.
…the solution to our energy problem.
…the bond between mother and child.
2.288 Here is a list of nouns that usually or often have to after them:
access
addiction
adherence
affront
allegiance
allergy
allusion
alternative
answer
antidote
approach
attachment
aversion
contribution
damage
devotion
disloyalty
exception
fidelity
incitement
introduction
preface
prelude
recourse
reference
relevance
reply
resistance
return
sequel
solution
susceptibility
testimony
threat
vulnerability
witness
Here is a list of nouns that usually or often have for after them:
admiration
appetite
aptitude
bid
craving
credit
cure
demand
desire
disdain
dislike
disregard
disrespect
hunger
love
need
provision
quest
recipe
regard
remedy
respect
responsibility
room
search
substitute
sympathy
synonym
taste
thirst
Here is a list of nouns that usually or often have on after them:
assault
attack
ban
claim
comment
concentration
constraint
crackdown
curb
dependence
effect
embargo
hold
insistence
reflection
reliance
restriction
stance
tax
Here is a list of nouns that usually or often have with after them:
affinity
collision
collusion
connection
contrast
correspondence
date
dealings
dissatisfaction
encounter
familiarity
identification
intersection