[Grammar] Good at vs good with

[MichaelLu2000]

Hello people!

I know that good at is used when we we refers to an activity while good with is used when refers to tools or people that we use or deal with.

In other words, "I am good at basketball" means that I am good at playing basketball, which is an activity. On the other hand, I am good with children means that I am good at interacting or dealing with children. To put it simply, "good at" means you are good at doing or achieving something, while "good with" means you are good at using or dealing with something or someone that already exist.

However, I would like to know whether I've used the correct forms in the following two sentences.

1. I am good at piano. (Piano, as a musical instrument, can be seen as an activity that involves playing music on it. If we used "good with" here, it would mean that we use the piano to do something else besides playing it, or we are good at dealing and wielding it.)

2. I am good with computers (Computers, as a kind of tool, is used to do other things. It's not a subject or an activity like piano, basketball, trumpet, or bowling, so with is used to mean that "using computers" is something I am good at. I know how to use the keyboard to key in the information, look up the words in an online dictionary, and surf the internet.)

Have I distinguished between them correctly?

Any advice is welcome.

Thanks

 

[tedmc]

Yes, but the quoted words should be written in inverted commas.