Afflict is usually used with with in active sentences and by in passive descriptions of a cause or agent.
Use afflict with when stating the problem or condition that affects someone or something. In passive structures, afflicted by often introduces the cause or source of suffering. Afflict by is not a normal active pattern.
These forms are not interchangeable. Choose the construction by meaning, not by which preposition appears most often.
Use afflict with to state the illness, difficulty, or condition affecting someone or something.
Use afflicted by in passive clauses to identify the force, event, or situation responsible for the problem.
Be afflicted with is common in formal English when talking about disease, pain, or hardship.
The same subject can take different constructions because each sentence answers a different question.
Some combinations appear in real text but do not mean what learners often assume.
Afflict by is not normally used directly after the verb in active voice.
✕ The disease afflicted by weakness many patients. ✓ The disease afflicted many patients with weakness.Use with for the condition and by for the external cause in passive structures.
✕ The town was afflicted with the earthquake. ✓ The town was afflicted by the earthquake.Afflict usually needs an object showing who or what suffers.
✕ The drought afflicted with hunger. ✓ The drought afflicted the region with hunger.Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.
Paste the complete sentence below. Linguix checks the preposition together with grammar, spelling, punctuation, and style.
Yes. Afflict with is more common in formal, literary, or medical contexts.
Yes. Afflicted by stress is natural because stress is presented as the cause of suffering.
Afflicted with is more formal and often more serious in tone. Suffering from is more common in everyday English.
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