Comments on: Advocacy of a Usage of ‘Advocate’ http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=149 A Blog about Words and Language(s) from alphaDictionary.com Tue, 16 Apr 2013 09:00:36 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.6 By: Aaron Tovish http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=149&cpage=1#comment-81318 Aaron Tovish Tue, 18 Dec 2007 12:17:52 +0000 http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=149#comment-81318 I am not a trained grammarian, but I think that your explanation, while helpful is incomplete. Advocate can also be a noun: the person who advocates something on behalf of some group. "She is an advocate for the homeless." Some people make the mistake of transposing this into: "She advocates for the homeless." This is only, just barely acceptable, acceptable. It would be better if it were: "She advocates on behalf of the homeless." (Although this leaves dangling the question of what exactly it is that she advocates, and why the homeless need her advocacy.) So my rule of thumb is: If you can substitute 'on behalf of' (which admittedly can seem a bit wordy) for 'for' then let the 'for' pass. If you can remove the 'for' without making the sentence meaningless, do so. ("She advocates the homeless." won't fly.) I am not a trained grammarian, but I think that your explanation, while helpful is incomplete.
Advocate can also be a noun: the person who advocates something on behalf of some group.
“She is an advocate for the homeless.”
Some people make the mistake of transposing this into:
“She advocates for the homeless.”
This is only, just barely acceptable, acceptable. It would be better if it were:
“She advocates on behalf of the homeless.”
(Although this leaves dangling the question of what exactly it is that she advocates, and why the homeless need her advocacy.)
So my rule of thumb is:
If you can substitute ‘on behalf of’ (which admittedly can seem a bit wordy) for ‘for’ then let the ‘for’ pass. If you can remove the ‘for’ without making the sentence meaningless, do so.
(“She advocates the homeless.” won’t fly.)

]]> By: Doug Brandt http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=149&cpage=1#comment-61516 Doug Brandt Wed, 26 Sep 2007 14:10:18 +0000 http://www.alphadictionary.com/blog/?p=149#comment-61516 I always love finding opinions that are identical to mine, especially when the person who shares my opinion has a better way of explaining a rule than I do. I will print out this page and hand it to my coworkers who disagree with my decision to ban the use of advocating for and against things. I'm also going to bookmark this page. Thank you! Doug Brandt Associate Editor American Journal of Nursing I always love finding opinions that are identical to mine, especially when the person who shares my opinion has a better way of explaining a rule than I do. I will print out this page and hand it to my coworkers who disagree with my decision to ban the use of advocating for and against things. I’m also going to bookmark this page. Thank you!

Doug Brandt
Associate Editor
American Journal of Nursing

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