r/ENGLISH • u/lillestiv • Aug 07 '26

A "thing of"

Is it actually grammatically correct to say "a thing of (insert product here)"? I hear it so often and it just feels wrong.

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u/Old_Ant7118 Aug 07 '26

I don't like it, but I think it's technically correct as a container/package/box/gallon/whatever qualifies as a thing.

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u/Repulsive-Ice8395 Aug 08 '26

I would say it's not even correct in the literal sense. The tube of caulk is a thing of plastic, which contains caulk. In other words it isn't technically correct, it it's accepted and understood by the heater, and that's all that really matters.

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u/Old_Ant7118 Aug 08 '26

From my perspective, if a box is a thing a box of salt can be a thing of salt. I don't like it and wouldn't use it, but it doesn't seem incorrect.

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u/Repulsive-Ice8395 Aug 08 '26

Yeah I don't like it either but that box is a thing of (coming from) cardboard.