Hey CollegeConfidential,
Which of the following idiomatic phrases is correct?
a) criticized as
b) criticized for
Thanks!
They are both correct, but the usage is different. A person/thing can be criticized for its appearance, attitude, talent, etc. “Criticized for being X” is also a common idiom.
“Criticized as” requires the same kind of 1-to-1 correspondence required for “to be” verbs. When you write, “Tom was criticized as a liar,” it’s roughly the same as saying, “Tom is a liar.”
@WasatchWriter So how do you know which one to use, and in what circumstance?
Google search: approx 680,000 results for “criticized as” and over 6 million for “criticized for”…
Bob was criticized for his laziness.
Bob was criticized as a slacker.
@WasatchWriter I see. So basically, for is used when a quality is being described, and as is used when a general noun is being used.
Also, if you can put “to be” in front of the word, it should make sense as far as I know and work with “as.”
Ex: to be a laziness doesn’t make sense, but to be a slacker makes sense.
Please corect me if I’m wrong!
That sounds like what I said, yes.