Of (ŏv), prep.

prep. [A.-S. of, O. Fries. of, af, ef, O. Sax., Dan., Icel., Sw., & Goth. af, O. H. Ger. aba, apa, M. H. Ger. abe, ab, N. H. Ger. ab, allied to Lat. ab, Gr. ἀπό, Skr. apa.] From, or out from; proceeding from, as the cause, source, means, author, or agent bestowing; belonging to; pertaining or relating to; concerning;—used in a variety of applications; as, (a.) Denoting that from which any thing proceeds; indicating origin, source, motive, and the like; as, he is of a race of kings; he is of noble blood.

That holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. Luke i. 35.

I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you. 1 Cor. xi. 23.

(b.) Denoting possession or ownership, or the relation of subject to attribute; as, the apartment of the consul; the power of the king; a man of courage. (c.) Denoting the material of any thing, or that of which it is composed; as, a throne of gold; a sword of steel; a wreath of mist. (d.) Denoting part of an aggregate, or appurtenance to a whole or a number mentioned; as, of this little he had some to spare; some of the mines were unproductive.

It is a duty to communicate of those blessings we have received. Franklin.

(e.) Denoting that by which a person or thing is actuated or impelled; as, they went of their own will; no body can move of itself. (f.) Denoting consequence, propriety, or that which is appropriate.

For it was of the Lord to harden their hearts. Josh. xi. 20.

It is of the Lord’s mercies that we are not consumed. Lam. iii. 22.

(g.) Denoting reference to a thing;—equivalent to about, concerning; as, to boast of one’s achievements.

Knew you of this fair work? Shak.

(h.) Denoting distance from;—equivalent to from; as, within a league of the town. (i.) Denoting nearness or distance in point of time; as, it was within an hour of the appointed time. (j.) Denoting identity or equivalence;—used with a name or appellation, and equivalent to the relation of apposition; as, the continent of America; the city of Rome; the island of Cuba. (k.) Denoting the agent, or person by whom, or thing by which, any thing is, or is done.

He taught in their synagogues, being glorified of all. Luke iv. 15.

And Jesus, being full of the Holy Ghost, returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being forty days tempted of the devil. Luke iv. 1, 2.

The use of the word in this sense, as applied to persons, is nearly obsolete.

(l.) Denoting passage from one state or position to another. [Obs.] “O miserable of happy.” Milton. (m.) Denoting relation to place or time; as, men of Athens; the people of the middle ages; in the days of Herod.

From is the primary sense of this preposition; a sense retained in off, the same word differently written for distinction. But this radical sense disappears in most of its applications; as, a man of genius; a man of courage; a man of rare endowments; a fossil of a red color, or of an hexagonal figure; he lost all hope of relief; this is an affair of the cabinet; he is a man of decayed fortune; what is the price of corn? In these and similar phrases, of denotes property or possession, or a relation of some sort involving connection. These applications, however, all proceeded from the same primary sense. That which proceeds from, or is produced by, a person or thing, either has had, or still has, a close connection with the same; and hence the word was applied to cases of mere connection, not involving at all the idea of separation or departure.

Of late, recently; in time not long past.—Of old, formerly; in time long past.