English Grammar
PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES with 'AT and 'FOR'
Set phrases or groups of words introduced with the prepositions 'at' and 'for'.
Prepositional phrases are set phrases or groups of words introduced by a preposition.
Below are some examples of commonly-used propositional phrases with 'AT' and 'FOR', with their meaning and a sentence showing how they are used.
Preposition | Prepositional phrase | Meaning | Example |
AT | At an advantage | In a favourable position that makes success more likely | Sophie's computer skills puts her at an advantage. |
At a disadvantage | In an unfavourable position that reduces the chances of success | Without computer skills Eva is at a disadvantage. | |
At any cost / at all costs | no matter how much effort or money is required | We must avoid the spread of the virus at any cost / at all costs. | |
At a distance | Not too close | The policeman followed the suspect at a distance. | |
At any rate | anyway; anyhow | Nobody knew much about the problem. At any rate Tom didn't. | |
At ease | Comfortable and relaxed | I was immediately at ease with the group. | |
At a glance | As soon as you see something | The technician identified the problem at a glance. | |
At hand | Close or very near | I always keep a dictionary at hand when I'm writing. | |
At large | still free; not yet captured | The suspected murderer is still at large. | |
At length | For a long time | He spoke at length about the dangers of alcohol. | |
At liberty | Be allowed/be free to do something | I am not at liberty to reveal the details. | |
At most | At the maximum | It will cost you 50€ at the most. | |
At odds (with) | In disagreement | The two heirs are at odds with each other. | |
At once | Immediately; instantly | It's urgent. Tell him to call me at once! | |
At the latest | No later than | The boss wants the report by Friday at the latest. | |
At random | In no particular order | Samples were distributed at random. | |
At risk | In danger | The house is at risk if the river overflows. | |
At the outset | At the begininning or start | It all seemed very simple at the outset. | |
At short notice | A short time beforehand | I can't change the arrangements at (such) short notice. | |
At a standstill | Stopped completely (for the moment) | Renovation work on the museum is at a standstill. | |
At times | Occasionally; sometimes | The old lady behaves strangely at times. | |
FOR | For ages | For a long time | I haven't been downtown for ages! |
For a change | To do something different | Let's go hiking for a change. | |
For instance | To give an example | John works late. For instance, yesterday he left the office at 9 pm. | |
For nothing | In vain | The trains are on strike. I walked to the station for nothing! | |
For nothing | At no cost | He gave me several books and dictionaries for nothing! | |
For the sake of | For the purpose of; in the interest of | They stayed together for the sake of their children. | |
For short | As a short form | William is his name, but he's called Bill for short. | |
For now | Until a later time | That's all the information we have for now. | |
For sale/rent/hire | Something offered to people to buy/rent/hire ... | That red car is for sale. | |
For better or worse | Whatever the consequences | Anyway, I accepted the job, for better or worse. | |
For want of | Because of a lack of | For want of a better place we set up camp in a field. | |
For a while | For a period of time | I'd like to stop working and travel for a while. |
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See also: Prepositions