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Prepositions after verbs

Bless with or bless by?

Bless is commonly used with with to name a quality or gift someone receives. By usually appears in passive phrases such as blessed by fate or blessed by her parents.

Quick answer

Use bless with for gifts or qualities

Use bless with when someone or something gives a quality, talent, or advantage: The team was blessed with great leadership. Use blessed by to name the source of a blessing in passive constructions: We were blessed by good weather.

She was blessed with remarkable patience.
The village was blessed by a mild climate.
They felt blessed with supportive friends.

Choose the pattern by meaning

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

1
bless with + quality

Giving someone a positive quality or advantage

Use bless with to mention the gift, skill, or feature received.

The region is blessed with fertile soil.
He was blessed with a strong memory.
2
blessed by + source

Naming who or what gives the blessing

Use blessed by in passive structures to identify the source of the blessing.

The ceremony was blessed by a local priest.
We were blessed by years of peace.
3
bless + object

Using bless without a following preposition

Bless can take a direct object with no preposition.

Bless the children before dinner.
The priest blessed the house yesterday.

See the difference in context

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

Construction
Example
Meaning
bless with
She was blessed with musical talent.
standard for describing a gift, talent, or advantage someone has
blessed by
The town was blessed by good harvests.
standard passive pattern naming the source or cause of the blessing
bless by
The priest blessed the crowd by touching their heads.
by here introduces a method or action, not a fixed verb-preposition combination

Common mistakes

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

Using by instead of with for qualities

Use with when naming a talent, feature, or advantage.

✕ He was blessed by intelligence. ✓ He was blessed with intelligence.

Forgetting the passive with by

Blessed by is normally passive.

✕ They bless by good fortune. ✓ They were blessed by good fortune.

Adding an unnecessary preposition

Bless can directly take an object.

✕ The priest blessed to the family. ✓ The priest blessed the family.

Quick practice

Choose the expression that matches the intended meaning.

1. The island is blessed ___ beautiful beaches.
2. The project was blessed ___ strong financial support.
3. The crowd was blessed ___ the visiting monk.

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Frequently asked questions

Is bless with the most common pattern?

Yes. Bless with is the standard pattern for talents, qualities, and advantages.

Can blessed by be correct?

Yes. Blessed by is natural in passive constructions when you mention the source of the blessing.

Can I use bless without a preposition?

Yes. Bless often takes a direct object, as in bless the child or bless the house.

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