In this line:
Being too intimate in public places, ignoring social morality and causing embarrassment of others.
Should the preposition after "embarrassment" be "of" or "to"?
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In this particular sentence, "to" works a little better than "of," IMO. Also, it should be "public places" (plural). – William Bloom Jul 14 '15 at 3:00
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Thanks. I think to is better. But is "of" wrong? – Louis Liu Jul 14 '15 at 3:22
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"causing the embarassment of others", or "causing embarassment to others" (as William says). – Margana Jul 14 '15 at 3:31
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@LouisLiu, "of" is not wrong, although it sounds strange. In my opinion, it is preferable to rewrite the fragment as, "embarrassing others" (rather than "causing embarrassment of others"). – Jake Regier Jul 14 '15 at 3:56
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Where is the rest of your sentence? This could either be the beginning or the end of a full sentence. With a full sentence, it's possible that from could be more necessary, if not mandatory. – dockeryZ Jul 15 '15 at 23:57
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embarrassment to
The same way as you can cause
- harm to
- damage to
- danger to
- resentment to
- pain to
- discontent to
These all have a negative mood to them. And I can't imagine embarrassment ever being a positive thing either. The object is receiving the action (and effect) of cause.
