"as opposed to" or "as apposed to"

Question

Which is correct? "I prefer coffee as opposed to tea" or "I prefer coffee as apposed to tea"

It seems that if you apply the definition of "opposed" that the two items are in opposition to one another the first would work but it also seems correct to use "apposed" if you are doing a comparison.

Avangi · Accepted Answer

"I prefer coffee as opposed to tea" or "~~I prefer coffee as apposed to tea~~"

I usually hear "in apposition to." I fear your sentence stretches the definition.

How about, I was surprised by the apposition of coffee and tea in front of him. ??

Dimsumexpress · Answer

Anonymous "I prefer coffee as opposed to tea" or "I prefer coffee as apposed to tea"

This sounds weird to my ears. Prehaps: Q: Would you like some hot tea ? A: "I'd prefer coffee than/ over tea, if you don't mind ".

But: John will be back to work Wednesday from vacation as opposed to Friday as originally scheduled.

As opposed ~ means contrary to or in conflict with.

Avangi · Answer

I see no problem with "I prefer coffee as opposed to tea."

A: Would you care for some coffee?
B: I prefer coffee over/as opposed to tea, but frankly, I could go for a martini.

Granted, it's a bit wordy, and perhaps impolite.

Dimsumexpress · Answer

AvangiI see no problem with "I prefer coffee as opposed to tea."

A: Would you care for some coffee?
B: I prefer coffee over/as opposed to tea, but frankly, I could go for a martini.

Hahaha Avangi, I think you already have one too many Martini[D]

Seriously, "as opposed" sounded too heavy for the context to me. Maybe I should have one of those Martinis that you enjoy.

Yankee · Answer

Hi Anon

As you have noticed from the previous posts, the phrase 'as apposed to' simply is not idiomatic. You need only check COCA (Corpus of Contemporary American English) to find that out. There are no examples whatsoever for any usage of 'as apposed to', but there are approximately 6500 examples for 'as opposed to'.

Dimsum, this also sounds odd:

"I'd prefer coffee than tea, if you don't mind ".
For me, 'than' would have to be preceded by the word 'rather' in that sentence in order to be grammatical, and to sound natural.

I agree with Avangi that "I prefer coffee as opposed to tea" is OK. It just isn't the most common way to express that idea.

Dimsumexpress · Answer

YankeeDimsum, this also sounds odd:
"I'd prefer coffee than tea, if you don't mind ".

Thanks Amy for pointing that out. I should have a separate example with "than" instead of mixing it with "over" in the same context.

YankeeI agree with Avangi that "I prefer coffee as opposed to tea" is OK. It just isn't the most common way to express that idea.

I am not saying it is wrong. I just thought it sounded heavy in the "tea or coffee" context. My comment to Avangi was because: Q - would you like some coffee ? And the answer was "I would prefer coffee as opposed to/ over tea... ". I was just having a little fun with "coffee" being the answer along with the Martinis. That's all.

Avangi · Answer

I cheerfully yield.

I was never renowned as a champion of the most common.

BarbaraPA · Answer

Avangichampion of the most common

Ugh. Who would want that title anyway??

Anonymous · Answer

I think he's playing on the phrase "champion of the common man", also known as  "champion of the people".

Ivanhr · Answer

Hi guys.

I see that nobody mentioned

I prefer coffee to tea.

I'm wondering whether this usage is more BrE as I suspect "over" would be more frequent in the US.

"as opposed to" or "as apposed to"

Top answer

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

Related Questions