I want to know more about using preposition for in this sentence:
Say hello to your sister for me.
Why not from me instead of for?
I looked through some dictionary articles for preposition for and couldn't find something about such a meaning.
English Language Learners Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for speakers of other languages learning English. It only takes a minute to sign up.
Sign up to join this communityI want to know more about using preposition for in this sentence:
Say hello to your sister for me.
Why not from me instead of for?
I looked through some dictionary articles for preposition for and couldn't find something about such a meaning.
It's "say hello for me" because you are asking them to say hello to that person on your behalf.
Some people may say "hello from me", but it is an error. Why would you need to tell the person you are talking to that the hello is from you? Who else could it be from?
The underlying meaning is completely different, and follows naturally from the core meanings of the prepositions. For me means "on my behalf, for my benefit, in place of me". From me means "originating from me".
In this particular instance there is little difference in effective meaning, but that is accidental, because of the meanings of the particular words and the social context.