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What is the right preposition after "skeptical"?

English Language & Usage Asked on February 25, 2021

Which preposition is suitable to follow skeptical?

2 Answers

You pose two different uses of the word and thought. In the one case a speaker is skeptical "of" a "truth" and in the later he is "posing" (in) skepticism as a position.

One who is skeptical of a "truth" is in fact doubtful of its authenticity.

One who poses as a skeptic writes regarding his belief in the inaccuracy of the given "truth."

Answered by john Seeger on February 25, 2021

COCA finds these frequencies for prepositions that immediately follow skeptical:

Count Preposition
1099 of
804 about
21 as
15 on
14 in
11 at
9 with
8 from
6 to
6 because
5 after
4 by
3 among
3 for
3 toward
2 without
2 towards
1 up
1 until
1 like
1 throughout
1 through
1 regarding
1 over
1 during
1 despite
1 across
2025 Total

So almost always the right answer is either of skeptical of or skeptical about, but other possibilities may exist depending on the broader context and personal predilections. Most of the others are false hits, and not actually part of the skeptical PREP THING bit at all.

I say “personal predilections” because I cannot see myself ever being skeptical at something, but apparently some people on occasion are so. One of those citations is this one, from a piece of short fiction named “School Days” by Russell Banks in 1995:

I told him how I’d agreed to send Rose back to her mom in the morning and he looked a little skeptical at that with one eyebrow cocked and his lips pressed together and didn’t say anything one way or the other.

Answered by tchrist on February 25, 2021

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