Sign In Get Started
Preposition after adjective

Awash with or awash in?

Both awash with and awash in are idiomatic. Awash with usually refers to being full of things, while awash in often emphasises being covered or surrounded.

Quick answer

Which preposition goes with awash?

Use awash with for abundance of things such as money, rumours, or colour. Use awash in when something is surrounded or flooded by a substance, light, or emotion. Both can overlap in meaning.

The internet is awash with misinformation
The beach was awash in sunlight
The office was awash with complaints

Choose the pattern by meaning

These forms are not interchangeable. Choose the construction by meaning, not by which preposition appears most often.

1
awash with + things

Showing abundance

Awash with commonly means full of a large amount of something.

The market is awash with cheap imports
2
awash in + substance or atmosphere

Showing coverage or immersion

Awash in often describes being surrounded by light, water, colour, or emotion.

The room was awash in blue light
3
awash with + emotion

Describing strong emotional presence

Use awash with for emotions spreading through a person or group.

She was awash with relief
4
awash in + water

Describing flooding

Awash in is common in physical descriptions involving water or liquid.

After the storm, the streets were awash in seawater

See the difference in context

The same subject can take different constructions because each sentence answers a different question.

Construction
Example
Meaning
awash with
The report was awash with technical jargon.
full of a large quantity of something
awash in
The valley was awash in morning mist.
covered or surrounded by something
awash of
The city was awash of tourists.
Nonstandard; use awash with or awash in instead.

Common mistakes

Some combinations appear in real text but do not mean what learners often assume.

Using awash of

Awash is not normally followed by of.

✕ The forum is awash of spam. ✓ The forum is awash with spam.

Choosing with for physical coverage

In descriptions of light, water, or colour, in is often more natural.

✕ The hall was awash with golden light. ✓ The hall was awash in golden light.

Forgetting the adjective structure

Awash usually follows a linking verb such as be.

✕ They awash with ideas. ✓ They are awash with ideas.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. The city was ___ tourists during the festival.
2. The hills were ___ fog at sunrise.
3. Choose the standard expression.

Check your sentence in context

Paste the complete sentence below. Linguix checks the preposition together with grammar, spelling, punctuation, and style.

Free to try · No signup required

Frequently asked questions

Can awash with and awash in mean the same thing?

Yes. Both can suggest abundance, but with is more common for quantities and in for surroundings or coverage.

Is awash of correct?

No. Awash is not normally followed by of in standard English.

Can awash describe emotions?

Yes. People can be awash with relief, pride, or excitement.

abhorrent-to-in-for-of, about "ablaze with" or "ablaze in"? "able for" or "able in"? "abreast of" or "abreast with"? "absent from" or "absent in"? absolute in, for, of, to or as? "absurd to", "absurd in" or "absurd for"? abundant in, with, of, on or for? "abusive to", "abusive in" or "abusive towards"? "academic in" or "academic at"? "acceptable to" or "acceptable for"? accessible to, by, for, from or in?

Write with confidence in Linguix

Create a free account to check complete texts, apply suggestions, and save your documents.

Create a free account