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Old 02-Feb-2006, 21:55
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Default 'by' as in John was jilted by Mary

I am wondering what part of speech the word 'by' is when it refers to the actor( agent?) in a sentence such as the one above
Laird Christie
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Old 03-Feb-2006, 07:19
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Default Re: 'by' as in John was jilted by Mary

It's a preposition: 4 a : through the agency or instrumentality of <by force> b : born or begot of c : sired or borne by http://www.m-w.com/
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