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Anonymous Posted 15 years ago
Grammar
Usage of " be-verb of"
Hello
Like we can say equally ,"The book is useful" and "The book is of use,
would it be possible for us to say, "I am of happiness" instead of saying,"I am happy"?
Could anyone help me out of this?
Like we can say equally ,"The book is useful" and "The book is of use,
would it be possible for us to say, "I am of happiness" instead of saying,"I am happy"?
Could anyone help me out of this?
Top answer
No, you cannot. 'To be of use' is idiomatic. There are a few other forms – 'be of interest/concern/value' come to mind offhand – but it is not a productive form.
- No, you cannot.
- 'To be of use' is idiomatic.
- There are a few other forms – 'be of interest/concern/value' come to mind offhand – but it is not a productive form.
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2 Answers
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No, you cannot. 'To be of use' is idiomatic. There are a few other forms – 'be of interest/concern/value' come to mind offhand – but it is not a productive form.
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For a few more idiomatic expressions with "be of", see .
Where a common adjective like "happy" is available, it's really pointless to use the "be of" construction to create "to be of happiness". That, in spite of the existence of " to be of good cheer".
CJ
Where a common adjective like "happy" is available, it's really pointless to use the "be of" construction to create "to be of happiness". That, in spite of the existence of " to be of good cheer".
CJ
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