give freely of

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keannu

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Do you use "give of"? Isn't "of" redundant or unnecessary?
give freely of
19-2)Some people said Habitat for Humanity wouldn’t work, but it did and it continues to, even though most of the volunteers have little or no experience in construction. ( ① ) Cash and materials are donated by individuals, churches, corporations, and many other kinds of organizations. ( ② ) People from all walks of life give freely of their time and skills. ( ③ ) At first there were legitimate questions about whether houses built in this fashion would be sufficiently strong. ( ④ ) The hurricane le
 
not a teacher

you give your time and skills freely
you give freely your time and skils
 
"Give freely of their time" is not uncommon.

See here.
 
I couldn't get enough information in "here". I'm curious about the usage of "of" of "give of".
 
"Give of" is a phrasal verb, used pretty exclusively in contexts such as "giving freely/generously/unstintingly of one's time/effort/skills/money". One never hears about someone "giving unwillingly/meanly/parsimoniously of their time/etc". It's the sort of convoluted expression often used in laudatory speeches at weddings, retirement parties and funerals; and it's seldom used these days in day to day speech.
 
very useful information, thanks :)
 
"Give of" is a phrasal verb, used pretty exclusively in contexts such as "giving freely/generously/unstintingly of one's time/effort/skills/money". One never hears about someone "giving unwillingly/meanly/parsimoniously of their time/etc". It's the sort of convoluted expression often used in laudatory speeches at weddings, retirement parties and funerals; and it's seldom used these days in day to day speech.

This seems to contradict what Mike found from his search on the internet, that 'giving freely of something' is more common than 'giving something freely'.
 
not a teacher

You give your time and skills freely.
You give freely your time and skills.
The second is not colloquial, tedmc.

Your answer does not address 'give of'.
 
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