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Which is better grammar: "courteous of" or "courteous to"?

English Language & Usage Asked by kettch on January 29, 2021

I saw this in a document today, and was wondering about which usage is more appropriate.

Please be courteous of others

vs

Please be courteous to others

I’ve seen it both ways. Is one correct, or more appropriate for certain situations?

3 Answers

"Courteous to others" is correct. "Courteous of others" is possible, but the former is more common.

Answered by Charles on January 29, 2021

"Courteous to others" has 483,000 results on Google vs. "Courteous of others" which only has 85,400 results

Answered by Paul Amerigo Pajo on January 29, 2021

For the most part, the two phrasings are indistinguishable, but I believe there are subtly different implications between them.

Please be courteous of others is advice to be taken "inwardly"; it is advising its recipient to be mindful, to think of the actions that others might take. In particular, there is a mental component to the prescription; it says, you should think of others' desires before doing whatever it is you want to do.

Please be courteous to others is advice directed towards "outward" behavior; it advises its recipient to simply act courteously, not necessarily think so; it says, you might think as rude as spiteful thoughts as you want, but please observe a modicum of politeness.

Answered by Uticensis on January 29, 2021

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