Of and for are two prepositions commonly used in English, and there is a certain difference in their role and meaning in a sentence. In this paper, the parts of speech, word meanings, and usage are compared and analyzed.
1. Part of speech. Of and for are both prepositions, and a preposition is a class of speech that is used to connect words such as nouns, pronouns, gerunds, etc., to indicate the relationship between them and other words. A preposition is usually placed before the word it modifies and forms a prepositional phrase that serves as a component of a sentence like subject, object, definite, adverbial, etc. For example:
the book of poems is on the table.(The preposition of books joins the noun book and poems to form the prepositional phrase of poems, which is used as a definite of the noun book to indicate the content of the book.) ）
he is looking for his keys.(The preposition for joins the pronoun his and the noun keys to form the prepositional phrase for his keys, which serves as the object of the verb looking and indicates the object of search.) ）
she is good at singing.(The preposition at joins the gerund singing to form the prepositional phrase at singing, which is used as an adverbial of the adjective good to indicate the field of expertise.) ）
2. Word meaning. There are certain differences in the meanings of of
The meaning of the word of.
Belongs to (something), which indicates the owner of something or the scope to which it belongs. For example:
this is a picture of my family.(This is a ** from my family.)
he is a member of the club.(He's a member of the club.) ）
Being part of (someone) or (something) and denoting a part or weight of someone or something. For example:
two of the students are from china.(Two students are from China.) ）
a cup of tea, please.(Please give me a cup of tea.) ）
About (something), the content or subject that indicates something. For example:
the story of harry potter is very popular.(The Harry Potter story is popular.) ）
what is the meaning of this word?(What does the word mean?) ）
Background information such as a person's place of birth, nationality, occupation, etc. For example:
she is a girl of french origin.(She is a girl of French descent.) ）
he is a man of great courage.(He was a very brave man.) ）
To live in (a certain place), which indicates the place or location where a person lives. For example:
they are from the south of england.(They are from the south of England.) ）
he lives in the house of his uncle.(He lives in his uncle's house.) ）
The meaning of the word for.
For and for, it is often used to express emotions or attitudes such as giving, support, benefit, gratitude, and apology. For example:
this gift is for you.(This gift is for you.) ）
i am for this plan.(I support this plan.) ）
he works hard for his family.(He worked hard for his family.) ）
thank you for your help.(Thank you for your help.) ）
i am sorry for being late.(Sorry, I'm late.) ）
Giving, pairing, and supplying denotes the user, applicator, or provider of something, and is often used to denote the relationship between distribution, suitability, service, matching, etc. For example:
there is a seat for you.(There is a seat for you.) ）
this book is for children.(This book is for kids.) ）
he works for a big company.(He works for a large company.) ）
this dress is for the party.(This dress is for the party.) ）
To help indicates the effect or function of an action, and is often used to express help, prevention, preparation, and other purposes. For example:
he takes some medicine for his headache.(He took some medicine to help with his headache.) ）
she locked the door for safety.(She locks the door for safety.) ）
he is studying hard for the exam.(He studied hard for exams.) ）
About, the content or topic that represents an action, is often used to indicate activities such as discussion, writing, voting, etc. For example:
they are talking for hours.(They talked for hours.) ）
he wrote a letter for his friend.(He wrote a letter to his friend.) ）
they voted for the new president.(They voted for the new **.)
3. Usage. There are certain differences in the usage of of, which are mainly reflected in the following aspects:
Usage of of.
All relations, which indicate the owner of something or the range to which it belongs, are often used between nouns or pronouns to form prepositional phrases that form a noun part, as the subject, object, definite of a sentence, etc. For example:
the name of the book is "gone with the wind".(The title of the book is Gone with the Wind.) ) as the subject of the sentence).
i like the color of your dress.(I love the color of your dress.) (as the object of a sentence).
he is a friend of mine.(He's a friend of mine.) (as a predicate of a sentence).
Partial relation, which indicates the component or component of someone or something, is often used after a number, quantifier, fraction, percentage, etc., to form a prepositional phrase of a noun, as the subject, object, and definite of a sentence. For example:
two of the students are absent today.(Two students were absent today.) ) as the subject of the sentence).
he drank a glass of water.(He drinks a glass of water.) (as the object of a sentence).
half of the cake is left.(Half of the cake is left.) (as a sentence of the sentence).
Descriptive relationship, which indicates the characteristics, attributes, state, etc. of someone or something, is often used after adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, etc., to form adjectives or adverbial prepositional phrases, as the definite and adverbial of sentences. For example:
he is a man of great courage.(He was a very brave man.) (as a sentence of the sentence).
she ran out of breath.(She runs out of breath.) (as an adverbial of a sentence).
he is proud of his son.(He was proud of his son.) (as a complement to a sentence).
Homotope, which indicates a synonym or interpretation of someone or something, is often used after a noun or pronoun to form an isonym that makes the same component as the preceding noun or pronoun in a sentence. For example:
the city of beijing is the capital of china.(The city of Beijing is the capital of China.) (of beijing is a synonym of the city, as the subject of a sentence).
he g**e me a book, the title of which i can't remember.(He gave me a book, and I can't remember the title.) ) (of which is a homonym of the title, as the object of the sentence).
she is a teacher, a profession of great respect.(She is a teacher, a respectable profession.) (of greatest respect is a synonym of a profession, as a predicate of a sentence).
Usage of for.
Purpose relation, which indicates the object, purpose or reason of a certain action, is often used after a verb or gerund to form a verbal preposition phrase, as the object of a sentence, an adverbial, etc. For example:
he is looking for his keys.(He's looking for his key.) (for his keys is the object of looking, indicating the object of looking).
she went to the market for some vegetables.(She went to the market and bought some vegetables.) (for some vegetables is an adverbial for went, indicating the purpose of going).
he apologized for being late.(He apologizes for being late.) (for being late is an adverbial for apologized, indicating the reason for the apology).
Adaptive relation, which indicates the user, applicator or provider of something, is often used after a noun or adjective to form a prepositional phrase that constitutes a noun or adjective, as a definite or adverbial of a sentence. For example:
this is a book for children.(This is a book for kids.) (for children is a definite term for a book, indicating the person to whom the book applies).
he is ready for the challenge.(He's up for the challenge.) (for the challenge is an adverbial for ready, indicating the object of preparation).
she works for a big company.(She works for a large company.) (for a big company is an adverbial for works, which indicates the provider of the work).
Functional relations, which indicate the effect or function of an action, are often used after a verb or adjective to form a verbal or adjective prepositional phrase, as an object of a sentence, complement, etc. For example:
he takes some medicine for his headache.(He took some medicine to help with his headache.) (for his headache is the object of takes, indicating the function of the medicine).
she locked the door for safety.(She locks the door for safety.) (for safety is a complement for locked, indicating the effect of locking the door).
he is studying hard for the exam.(He studied hard for exams.) (for the exam is a complement for studying, indicating the purpose of learning).
Thematic relationship, which indicates the content or theme of an action, is often used after a verb or noun to form a verbal or noun preposition phrase, as the object of a sentence, a definite, etc. For example:
they are talking for hours.(They talked for hours.) (for hours is the object of talking, indicating the content of the conversation).
he wrote a letter for his friend.(He wrote a letter to his friend.) (for his friend is a letter that indicates the subject of the letter).
they voted for the new president.(They voted for the new **.) for the new president is the object of voted, indicating the content of the vote).